14 Stuffed Shells Recipes That Are Packed with Flavor

If you never forgot about stuffed shells, congratulations—you’re obviously winning at life. For the rest of us, why did these gooey, comfort food delights ever fall out of favor? But wait—before we go on the nostalgia tour with the tomato sauce, ricotta and mozz, that never hit a wrong note, just think of all the directions these scrumptious baked pasta vessels can take your family dinner tonight. Forget decorative gourd season—we hereby anoint cozy season, wintry season, hygge season: stuffed shell season.

Looking for somewhere to start? This recipe has all the components of a home run: the tomato sauce, a savory ricotta filling flecked with fresh parsley and the shells, soft and yielding in some spots, toasted and crisp at the tips. But here’s the best part: No par-boiling of the pasta is necessary. A relatively watery sauce (made by just adding water) and a tight foil top allows the pasta to cook right in the casserole, absorbing the flavorful liquid and rendering this (our favorite) a one-pan dinner.

Eaten even over plain pasta, this leek-infused chicken alfredo is perhaps the best in its class. Stuff it inside some pasta shells, however, and those toasty tips and fresh chives just take it to a whole other level.

This is the recipe we developed to get as close to the stuffed shells we remembered as possible, but maybe a little better. The perfect blend of cheeses, a homemade tomato sauce and a whole lot of love.

This one goes out to all those people who have a hard time deciding between pizza or pasta (i.e., all of us). And if there’s someone in the family who declares it’s pizza or bust, just bust out this mic-drop of a recipe.