Recipes & Cooking International Recipes Italian Recipes This Easy Dump and Bake Manicotti Has a Genius Shortcut: String Cheese 5.0 (2) 2 Reviews There's no need to boil the pasta either! By Sarah Martens Sarah Martens Sarah Martens is the Senior Editor overseeing food at Better Homes & Gardens digital. She has been with the BHG brand for more than 10 years. Learn about BHG's Editorial Process Published on February 9, 2024 Recipe tested by Sarah Brekke, MS Recipe tested by Sarah Brekke, MS Sarah Brekke, a culinary expert with The Better Homes and Gardens Test Kitchen, is passionate about food and cooking. Her unique background as both a food scientist and a culinary contributor allows her to blend her passions for both educating readers and creating tasty content. Learn more about the Better Homes & Gardens Test Kitchen Rate PRINT Share Trending Videos Close this video player Photo: Rachel Marek Prep Time: 10 mins Cook Time: 10 mins Bake Time: 50 mins Stand Time: 5 mins Total Time: 1 hr 15 mins Servings: 6 Yield: 1 (3-quart) casserole Jump to Nutrition Facts Sticking string cheese in uncooked pasta may seem like an unusual start to dinner but it's the first step of making this easy dump and bake manicotti. Add the stuffed pasta to a baking dish, top with broth and sauce, and bake until tender and bubbly—that's it! The finished dish is a total crowd-pleaser, especially when served with an extra sprinkle of fresh basil. Get the whole family involved in the prep; kids will love unwrapping the cheese and stuffing the pasta. What Is Manicotti? Manicotti is both a pasta shape and an Italian dish. The traditional recipe is made with tubular pasta shells stuffed with a ricotta cheese mixture and topped with a tomato sauce. To make the classic, pasta is pre-cooked, stuffed with filling, added to a casserole dish, and baked until bubbly. Here, we're making no-boil manicotti with meat sauce. 19 Restaurant-Caliber Italian Pasta Recipes Dump and Bake Manicotti Ingredients This dump and bake casserole relies on a few shortcut ingredients to speed up the prep time. Here's a brief look at what you'll need to make the viral recipe. Pasta: You'll need one 8-ounce package of dried manicotti for this dump and bake casserole. Filling: Rather than the classic ricotta filling, we're stuffing each pasta tube with one piece of string cheese. Broth: To cook the pasta and add flavor, you'll need to add broth to the dish. Our Test Kitchen used low-sodium beef broth, but you could swap in low-sodium chicken broth instead. If you'd like to make a vegetarian manicotti, use vegetable broth. Sauce: For a true dump and bake dinner, you can use a 24-ounce jar of meat sauce for this recipe. Our Test Kitchen is also sharing a quick shortcut meat sauce made with Italian sausage, jarred pasta sauce, and seasonings. To make this manicotti recipe vegetarian, use your favorite jarred marinara sauce. Cheese: A sprinkle of shredded cheese on top is the perfect finish. How to Make Dump and Bake Manicotti There's no need to pre-cook the pasta for this manicotti recipe. Instead we're adding broth to the baking dish to help cook the pasta while it bakes. Here's a quick look at how to make this dump dinner. Place one string cheese inside each piece of pasta and place in a greased baking dish. Pour broth over the pasta. Cover the pasta with the prepared or purchased sauce and cover with foil. Bake until the pasta is cooked through. Uncover, sprinkle with cheese, and bake until bubbly and melted. Dump and Bake Chicken Parmesan Casserole Is Your Easiest Dinner Yet Ingredients 1 (8 ounce) package dried manicotti 14 pieces string cheese 1 1/2 cups low sodium beef broth or reduced sodium chicken broth 1 pound lean ground beef and/or bulk italian sausage 1/2 cup chopped onion 3 cloves garlic, minced 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional) 1 (24 ounce) jar spaghetti sauce 1 1/2 cups shredded Italian blend cheese Chopped fresh italian parsley or basil (optional) Directions Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly coat a 3-qt. rectangular baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Place one string cheese inside each manicotti tube and arrange stuffed shells in a single layer in the prepared dish. Add broth to the dish. In a large skillet cook ground beef and onion over medium heat until no longer pink; drain and discard fat, if needed. Add garlic and crushed red pepper (if using). Stir in spaghetti sauce. Spoon meat sauce evenly over pasta shells. Cover tightly with foil. Bake about 40 minutes until pasta is just al dente. Uncover and sprinkle with Italian blend cheese. Return to oven and bake 10 minute more or until cheese is melted and pasta is tender. Let stand at least 5 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with Italian parsley or basil (if using). Rate It Print Nutrition Facts (per serving) 685 Calories 48g Fat 22g Carbs 41g Protein Show Full Nutrition Label Hide Full Nutrition Label Nutrition Facts Servings Per Recipe 6 Calories 684.5 % Daily Value * Total Fat 47.6g 61% Saturated Fat 22.3g 111% Cholesterol 136.8mg 46% Sodium 1947.6mg 85% Total Carbohydrate 22.4g 8% Dietary Fiber 3.1g 11% Total Sugars 10.5g Protein 40.6g 81% Vitamin D 1.2mcg 6% Vitamin C 4.4mg 5% Calcium 618mg 48% Iron 2.8mg 16% Potassium 840.6mg 18% Fatty acids, total trans 0.2g Vitamin D 50.4IU Alanine 1.6g Arginine 1.6g Ash 8g Aspartic acid 3g Caffeine 0mg Carotene, alpha 0mcg Choline, total 106.3mg Copper, Cu 0.2mg Cystine 0.3g Energy 2862.6kJ Fluoride, F 7.8mcg Folate, total 48.7mcg Glutamic acid 6.9g Glycine 1.5g Histidine 1g Isoleucine 1.8g Leucine 3g Lysine 2.3g Methionine 0.9g Magnesium, Mg 67.2mg Manganese, Mn 0.3mg Niacin 9.4mg Phosphorus, P 582.5mg Pantothenic acid 0.4mg Phenylalanine 1.6g Phytosterols 3.4mg Proline 3.2g Retinol 220.3mcg Selenium, Se 42.7mcg Serine 1.4g Starch 2.3g Theobromine 0mg Threonine 1.6g Vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol) 4mg Tryptophan 0.6g Tyrosine 1.5g Valine 2g Vitamin A, IU 1718.4IU Vitamin A, RAE 269mcg Vitamin B-12 2.9mcg Vitamin B-6 0.6mg Vitamin K (phylloquinone) 25.2mcg Water 288.5g Zinc, Zn 5.4mg *The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.