Beef and Sausage Manicotti

I came up with this Beef and Sausage Manicotti recipe for my ricotta cheese and bell pepper-loving husband. I think most people love those ingredients, however I’m a weirdo and I just…don’t. So I don’t cook with either that often, and Mr. Bites doesn’t eat them as much as I’m sure he’d like. About a month and a half ago we closed on our new house (yay!) and since then we’ve both been busting our butts painting every square inch of it, ripping out carpet, installing light fixtures, making tons of decisions and basically overhauling the new place. My husband has worked incredibly hard making our new house feel like home, so I thought he definitely earned a tasty meal based on his tastes (which also means lots of meat).

To no one’s surprise, Mr. Bites loved it! I really think you all are going to love this Beef and Sausage Manicotti too. I mean, pasta stuffed with spicy sausage, hearty ground beef and cheese and smothered in a rich homemade tomato sauce and topped with more cheese – there’s a lot to love! To view your WW PersonalPoints for this recipe and track it in the WW app or site, click here!

Don’t be intimidated by all the ingredients and steps, this recipe really isn’t difficult! It does take a little more time than some of my other recipes, so it might be a good Sunday supper. I won’t lie to you, stuffing the manicotti is a little bit tedious (though pretty easy), but it’s worth it!

If you’re looking for more Italian comfort food recipes, have a look at my Sausage Tortellini Skillet, Eggplant Parmesan Casserole, Chicken Parmesan Quinoa Bake, Bubble Up Pizza Casserole, Spaghetti Pie, Slow Cooker Meatballs & Marinara, Four Cheese and Sausage Stuffed Shells and more in the Italian section of my recipe index!

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Beef and Sausage Manicotti

Prep Time: 1 hour hr

Cook Time: 35 minutes mins

Total Time: 1 hour hr 35 minutes mins

Calories: 385kcal

Pasta stuffed with spicy sausage, hearty ground beef and cheese, smothered in a rich homemade tomato sauce and topped with more cheese!

Yield: 7 (2 piece) servings

Ingredients

• ¾ lb 95% lean ground beef
• ¾ lb hot Italian poultry sausage, turkey or chicken sausage is fine
• 1 cup finely diced mushrooms
• ½ cup finely diced green peppers
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 ¼ cup fat free Ricotta cheese
• 1 tablespoon thinly sliced fresh basil
• 8 oz (14 noodle) box of manicotti noodles (I used Barilla)
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1/2 cup chopped onions
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 cups canned crushed tomatoes
• 8 oz can tomato sauce
• 6 oz can tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon thinly sliced fresh basil
• 1 ½ teaspoons Italian seasoning
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• ¾ teaspoon sugar
• 1 bay leaf
• ¾ cup shredded 2% Mozzarella cheese

Instructions

• Pre-heat the oven to 350. Lightly mist a 9x13 casserole dish with cooking spray.
• In a large skillet or saute pan, cook the ground beef and sausage together over medium heat, breaking them up into small pieces as they cook. Once the meat is almost cooked through, add the mushrooms and green peppers. Continue to cook for a few more minutes until meat is completely cooked through and peppers and mushrooms are softened. Add a clove of minced garlic, stir and cook for an additional minute. Remove the contents of the pan to a mixing bowl and allow to cool. Once the mixture has cooled, stir in the Ricotta cheese and tablespoon of basil.
• Set a large pot of salted water to boil and cook the manicotti noodles according to package directions. Drain and rinse noodles.
• While waiting for the water to boil in step 3, bring a teaspoon of olive oil over medium heat in a medium saucepan. Add the chopped onion and stir to coat. Cook, stirring occasionally, for a few minutes until onions are softened. Add the 2 cloves of minced garlic and cook for an additional minute. Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, tablespoon of basil, Italian seasoning, salt, sugar and the bay leaf to the onion mixture and reduce heat to low to simmer. Stir to combine and let simmer for around 15 minutes. Remove the bay leaf before using the sauce in the dish.
• When the other steps are complete, spread about 2/3 cup of the sauce across the bottom of the prepared baking dish from step 1. Use a spoon to stuff each of the cooked manicotti noodles with the meat/ricotta mixture you made in step two and lay them in the dish (feel free to cram them in there or pile a few extras on top). Cover the stuffed manicotti with the remaining tomato sauce and then sprinkle with shredded Mozzarella.
• Place the dish in the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes until heated through and bubbly.

Notes

To view your WW PersonalPoints for this recipe and track it in the WW app or site, click here!

Nutrition Information per 2 piece serving:

385 calories, 42 g carbs, 13 g sugars, 9 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 33 g protein, 6 g fiber (from myfitnesspal.com)

MyWW SmartPoints per (2 piece) serving:(SP calculated using the recipe builder on weightwatchers.com)

Green: 9 SmartPoints/ Blue: 9 SmartPoints/ Purple: 9 SmartPoints

Weight Watchers Points Plus:

9 per (2 piece) serving (PP calculated using a Weight Watchers PointsPlus calculator and the nutrition info below)

Author: Emily Bites

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American, Italian

Keyword: Pasta Bake, Ricotta Cheese, Turkey Sausage, Weight Watchers, WW Pasta