Sausage, Spinach, & Cheese Baked Manicotti

 

I'm sharing a recipe today that my husband really enjoys.   

It's a very adaptable recipe.  For instance, it includes spinach, but you could definitely leave it out if your family is not a fan.  Want more cheese?  You can add it!  Don't have an egg?  I've made it without, and it turned out fine.  Want to add mushrooms?  You can do that too!  Chop them and cook with the onions and sausage.  I cut this recipe down by 3/4 all of the time - no issues at all.

**A quick printing note: Blogger (which is the host for this blog) does not offer a "print recipe" option so I have included a photo of the recipe below that you should be able to click on and print at 100% (or higher if you prefer the text larger).

I hope you enjoy it!

Sausage, Spinach, & Cheese Baked Manicotti

Makes 10-12 manicotti tubes

Ingredients:
10-12 manicotti pasta tubes 
1 pound Italian sausage, loose sausage or removed from casing
1 medium onion, finely diced
2 cups chopped fresh or 5-7 ounces frozen (thawed and drained) spinach
2 cups mozzarella, shredded, divided
½ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese, divided
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
salt
pepper
1 24-oz jar spaghetti sauce or equal amounts homemade sauce, divided

Grease a 13x9 baking dish. Spread ½ cup spaghetti sauce in the bottom of the dish. Set aside. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

Cook manicotti in salted water per package instructions.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet cook and crumble sausage (removed from casing if it’s not loose sausage) and onion in a large skillet until sausage is cooked through and browned. Add spinach then continue cooking for a few minutes or until spinach is wilted. Drain skillet if necessary.

Remove sausage mixture from heat and allow to cool for a few minutes. Add 1 cup shredded mozzarella, 1/2 cup grated parmesan, egg, 1/3 cup of the spaghetti sauce, garlic powder, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix well.

Drain manicotti well then stuff each tube with the meat-cheese mixture, placing stuffed manicotti in the prepared baking dish. If you have any of the meat mixture left over, just crumble on top of the manicotti.

Cover manicotti with remaining sauce, cover tightly with aluminum foil then bake for 30 minutes or until sauce is bubbly. Carefully remove aluminum foil then top dish with remaining mozzarella and
parmesan. Continue baking, uncovered, for 20 minutes or until cheese is melted and lightly golden.

Remove from oven and let dish rest 15 minutes before serving.

Printable recipe: