Giant Cheese Stuffed Shells (Olive Garden Copycat Recipe)

this recipe!

The best thing about this recipe is that it makes a big batch and we almost always have leftovers which reheat to cheesy perfection.

What’s great about this recipe

• It’s a simple, yet delicious and comforting meal. The creamy alfredo sauce is so rich and creamy. I think you’re going to love it!
• Cheese-stuffed giant shells are the ideal make-ahead recipe. It’s a dream to walk in the door and put these in the oven after a long day at work. Freeze for later and they’re absolutely delicious leftover.
• Made with simple ingredients that you can always find in the grocery store. Pasta dishes like this one are great to have in your reportoire of easy recipes to make for busy weeknights.

Ingredients You’ll Need

• Breadcrumbs – I used plain, store-bought breadcrumbs. You could also use the breadcrumbs that have the Italian seasoning mixed in or homemade breadcrumbs.
• Butter – you’ll need just a little butter to mix in with the breadcrumbs. I used salted or you can also used unsalted butter.
• Large pasta shells – You can use jumbo pasta shells, the giant shells if you can find them. The large ones like I used worked perfectly.
• Ricotta cheese – I like to use full-fat ricotta cheese for this pasta recipe.
• Egg – large egg for this recipe (and all of my recipes!).
• Heavy cream – heavy whipping cream is best for the Alfredo sauce.
• Mozzarella cheese – fresh mozzarella that you grate yourself is the best. You can also use a three-cheese blend of Italian cheese.
• Parmesan cheese – I know, it can be tempting sometimes to use the Parmesan cheese in the green shaker. Fresh Parmesan is so delicious in this recipe. It has so much more flavor! With three kinds of cheese in this recipe, the flavors will be out-of-this-world…especially if you use the best quality.
• Italian seasoning – If you don’t have Italian seasoning, you can create your own with equal parts of dried oregano, basil, thyme and rosemary.
• Garlic – use fresh garlic for these cheesy stuffed shells. In a pinch you could substitute garlic powder, but I highly recommend using fresh garlic in this shells recipe.
• Marinara sauce – we used a good quality store-bought marinara sauce or you can make homemade marinara sauce. You can always substitute jar sauce in all of my pasta recipes! In a pinch you could also use store-bought spaghetti sauce – your favorite brand.
• Parsley – you can use curly parsley, flat leaf Italian parsley or even fresh basil.

How many giant pasta shells per person?

Plan for 2-4 giant pasta shells per person. Two would be an average serving and up to four for larger appetitites.

Can you substitute the ricotta cheese in shells for cottage cheese?

Yes, you can substitute cottage cheese using a 1:1 ratio.

Variations

Add fresh or frozen spinach 250g (8 ounces) to the ricotta mixture.

Substitute manicotti shells for the giant shells.

In a pinch you could substitute store-bought alfredo sauce for the homemade alfredo sauce.

How to Make Giant Stuffed Cheese Shells Like Olive Garden

You can find a full printable recipe card at the bottom of this page. I’ve included some step-by-step photos to help you along the way as you make the recipe.

This recipe comes together in a few easy steps:

Step 1 – Preheat oven to 375°F. You will need a lightly greased 9×13-inch casserole dish for this recipe.

Step 2 – Melt 1 Tablespoon butter in a small saucepan or skillet over medium heat. Stir in the breadcrumbs and cook for 1-2 minutes. Set aside.

Step 3 – Cook the pasta shells in boiling, salted water according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

Step 4 – Make the cheese filling

In a large mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese, 1 cup of mozzarella cheese, 1 and 1/4 cups of Parmesan cheese, Italian seasoning, minced garlic, pepper and egg. Stir until well combined. (This cheese filling is also one of my favorite fillings for lasagna noodles)!

Step 5 – Spread 1 cup of marinara sauce in the bottom of prepared casserole dish.

Step 6 – Using a small spoon, stuff the shells with ricotta mixture. The shells are large enough that you can gently open them with your fingers as you fill them with the mixture.

You can also use a piping bag or ziplock bag like i did with beef cannelloni, but I find it pretty easy to use a spoon with the stuffed shells.

Place shells in a single layer in baking dish on top of the marinara sauce.

For the remaining marinara sauce, you have two options:

in the photos, you will see that I did not top with remaining marinara sauce. You can either pour the rest completely over top or spread a little on top and the remaining sauce around the shells. You can also heat it up and serve it on the side.

Cover casserole dish with foil and cook in 375°F oven for 25 minutes.

Tip: Spray aluminum foil with a little baking spray before covering the casserole dish. This will stop it from sticking to the top of the shells if your dish is a little on the shallow side.

Step 7 – Make the Alfredo sauce while the shells are cooking for 25 minutes. The sauce only takes about five minutes to make, so make it towards the end of the baking time.

In a large skillet, melt 6 Tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Add in 1 teaspoon of minced garlic and cook for two minutes.

Stir in half and half cream and 1 and 1/4 cups Parmesan cheese. Stir until smooth and slightly thickened. Taste and season with freshly ground black pepper.

Step 8 – After the 25 minute baking time, remove dish from the oven and spoon alfredo sauce on top of and around the shells. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs.

Set oven to ‘broil’ and set under broiler for 2 to 3 minutes. Sprinkle with fresh parsley and enjoy!

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