Stuffed manicotti is an excellent choice when you need to feed a crowd. It's less work than lasagna, but it still has all the flavor. Also, like lasagna, it can be made ahead of time.
This Italian-American recipe is a classic in many homes, not only because it's delicious, but because it's easy. It may be a simple dish, but one step in the manicotti-making process is anything but quick: filling the pasta. When the time comes to stuff the pasta tubes, many people resort to a pastry bag filled with ricotta, or they use a long spoon to reach inside each tube.
Both methods are messy, frustrating, and time-consuming. There's an easier way to fill that pasta that will leave you wondering why you didn't think of it before. When the tubes are cooked and ready to be stuffed, cut them lengthwise with a sharp knife or a pair of culinary scissors.
This will open up the tube, allowing you to easily fill it with cheese. This hack may seem counterintuitive, as anyone who's made manicotti will tell you how difficult it is to keep the fragile pasta tubes intact as you fill them. So, why would you ever cut them on purpose? There's an easier way There's a method to this madness.
Once you've filled one of your pasta tubes, you can gently roll it over so the cut side is on the bottom of the pan. Make sure the tube isn't overstuffed, and be sure to remove any excess filling before baking. After your delicious manicotti is cooked, no one will be the wiser.
It's so easy, it almost feels like cheatin.
