Meatball Stuffed Shells with Marinara Sauce
Comfort food doesn’t get much better than Meatball Stuffed Shells with Marinara Sauce, featuring savory meatballs, creamy ricotta filling, and topped with marinara.
Ingredients
For the Meatballs
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 lb ground pork
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1/2 cup dried minced onion
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup chopped parsley
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- black pepper to taste
For the Ricotta Filling
- 15 oz ricotta
- 1/2 cup chopped basil
- 1/2 cup parsley
- 1 cup grated Parmesan
- pinch of salt
For Assembly
- 12 oz jumbo pasta shells, cooked
- 32 oz marinara sauce
- extra Parmesan and basil for topping
Instructions
Prepare Meatballs
- Preheat your oven to 425°F.
- In a large mixing bowl, gently combine all the ingredients for the meatballs.
- Shape the mixture into walnut-sized balls and arrange them on a rack over a baking tray.
- Bake the meatballs for about 10 minutes, or until browned and cooked through.
Prepare Ricotta Filling
- Blend together the ricotta, chopped basil, parsley, grated Parmesan, and a pinch of salt until smooth.
Assemble Shells
- Fill each cooked jumbo pasta shell with the ricotta mixture and tuck a cooked meatball inside.
- In a baking dish, pour a layer of marinara sauce on the bottom and arrange the filled shells snugly over it.
- Sprinkle with extra grated Parmesan, then cover with foil.
- Bake for an additional 10 minutes.
Serve
- Garnish with fresh basil before serving.
Notes
Allow the meatballs to cool slightly before filling the pasta shells to avoid soggy shells. Make sure to cover the baking dish with enough marinara to keep the shells moist.