Vegetable Manicotti – Healthy Italian Main Course Recipe

This vegetable manicotti is loaded with the fresh taste of lots of vegetables but has a richness from the sauce and cheese that will delight even meat eaters.

Manicotti is pasta in the shape of tubes. These large tubes are just waiting for all types of fillings to make them more tasty!

Today, we’ll be adding fresh vegetables and ricotta that pack a nutritious punch to the pasta, then topping it with tomato sauce.

Keep reading to find out how to make the meatless recipe.

My whole family is very fond of Italian meals.  However, most of them are loaded with fat and calories, so it is up to me to try and lighten the dish up a bit.

We are also trying to eat a bit less meat, so Meatless Mondays are on my calendar right now.

Vegetable Manicotti – Great Italian Sensation

The whole dish is topped with store bought Italian sauce to save on time and then sprinkled with your favorite cheese.  I used Jarlsberg but any cheese will work fine. 

The stuffing has a lovely sweetness to it that is just delicious.

One bite of this delicious dish and your family will ask for more.  They won’t even miss the meat!  

The filling is rich without being too high in calories and the extra veggies add lots of nutritional goodness.

Add some sliced avocado or a tossed salad for a very satisfying meal.

For meat eaters, be sure to have a look at the meat version of this dish.  It still gives the veggie boosts but adds ground beef and has a few other substitutes too.

Be sure to visit my Facebook Gardening Cook page.

Yield: 8

Vegetable Manicotti - Healthy Italian Main Course Recipe

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This vegetable manicotti is a perfect blend of meatless and slimmed down.

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 55 minutes

Ingredients

• 8 ounces of uncooked manicotti shells.
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 onion
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 1 tbsp of fresh rosemary
• 1 tbsp of fresh oregano
• 1 tbsp of fresh basil
• 1 tsp of fresh thyme
• 1/2 cup of sweet red, yellow and orange peppers diced
• 1 cup of diced mushrooms
• 1 cup of small broccoli florets
• 15 oz ricotta cheese
• 1 medium egg
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan reggiano cheese
• 14 oz marinara sauce
• 1 cup of shredded Jarlsberg cheese.

Instructions

1. Cook the pasta in salted water as the box suggests. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a skillet and cook the onion, garlic, peppers, broccoli and mushrooms until just lightly cooked. Add the spices and stir to combine. Set aside
3. Combine the egg with the ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper and mix well. Add the vegetables and stir to combine.
4. Put a little of the pasta sauce in the middle of a 9 x 13" pan. Fill each manicotti shell with the vegetable mixture and place on the sauce. Add more sauce to the top of the filled shells and then top with the grated Jarlsberg cheese.
5. Cook for 20 to 25 minutes in a preheated 400 degree oven.
6. Serve with a pasta and warm crusty bread.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

8

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 294Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 61mgSodium: 526mgCarbohydrates: 22gFiber: 4gSugar: 4gProtein: 17g

Nutritional information is approximate due to natural variation in ingredients and the cook-at-home nature of our meals.

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