Pesto Manicotti No Tomatoes Recipes

CHEESY PESTO MANICOTTI

Steps:

• In a food processor add: fresh basil leaves, pine nuts, 3 garlic cloves, 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, kosher salt, and fresh ground black pepper. Pulse until ingredients are chopped.
• With the food processor on low blend, slowly pour the olive oil through the pour spout into the chopped ingredients, until fully combined. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. (See note #4)
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Cook manicotti pasta al dente according to package instruction. Do not overcook or they will fall apart when stuffing. Drain and set aside (you can add a touch of olive oil if they begin to stick to each other)
• In a large bowl add: 12oz ricotta cheese, 1 cup shredded mozzarella, 1 cup grated parmesan, 1 large egg, 3/4 cup of freshly made pesto, and 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes. Using a silicone spatula, mix all the ingredients until they are fully combined.
• In a baking dish, add 3/4 of the red sauce to the bottom of the dish and spread it out evenly, set aside. (See note #5)
• Using a gallon zip lock bag, spoon in the cheesy pesto mixture into the bag and push it all to one corner. Cut a hole in the bottom corner of the bag that will fit the inside circle of the manicotti. Grab an al dente cooked manicotti, insert the tip of the bag inside, squeeze until the manicotti is filled, then place the manicotti in the red sauce inside the baking dish. Repeat until all manicotti are filled.
• Once all the manicotti are filled, drizzle with the remaining 1/4 of the red sauce, the remaining 1/4 cup of the pesto. Top with 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese and 3 tbsp of parmesan cheese.
• Bake for 30 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbly. If you want the cheese more browned, broil for a few seconds keeping an eye not to burn it. Carefully remove from the oven, top with fresh basil, and serve.

PESTO-CHICKEN MANICOTTI

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375°F. In medium bowl, mix pasta sauce, water and garlic powder. In ungreased 13x9-inch (3-quart) glass baking dish, spread about one-third (1 cup) of the pasta sauce mixture.
• In medium bowl, sprinkle chicken tenders with Italian seasoning. Stuff chicken into uncooked manicotti shells. Place shells on pasta sauce in baking dish. Pour remaining pasta sauce mixture evenly over shells, covering completely.
• Cover with foil. Bake 45 to 50 minutes or until shells are tender. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake uncovered 2 to 4 minutes longer or until cheese is melted. Sprinkle with tomato. Serve with pesto.

CREAMY PESTO MANICOTTI

Steps:

• Combine 1/4 cup of the Mozzarella cheese and the next 8 ingredients (Mozzarella - garlic) in a food processor, and process until creamy.
• Prepare Manicotti according to package directions. While pasta is cooking, wash and squeeze all the water out of the spinach. When pasta is cooked, drain and set aside. Preheat oven to 350°.
• Spoon the cheese mixture into the manicotti shells and lay in a 9x13 pan or a pan large enough to hold all of the stuffed manicotti.
• Cover with tomato sauce and sprinkle with the grated Parmesan cheese. Cover and bake 20 minutes.
• *use shells or the long Manicotti strips.

PESTO MANICOTTI (NO TOMATOES)

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with a small amount of olive oil.
• Bring a large stockpot of salted water to a boil. Add the manicotti and cook al dente. Drain and arrange them on a tea towel so they don't touch. Set aside until cool enough to handle.
• Meanwhile, remove the excess water from the spinach by placing the leaves in a salad spinner. Continue spinning until no more water runs out.
• Coarsely chop the spinach.
• In a large bowl, combine the spinach, eggs, ricotta, mozzarella, Greek yogurt, garlic and oregano. Transfer the cheese mixture to a Zip-Lock-type plastic bag, squeeze out the air and seal. Set aside.
• Spread half of the pesto in an even layer over the bottom of the prepared baking dish.
• Snip off one corner of the bag of cheese mixture. Holding a manicotti tube in one hand and the bag in the other, insert the tip of the bag into the pasta tube and squeeze gently to fill it. Tip: to make filling easier, fill from both ends.
• Arrange each filled tube in a single layer in the prepared baking dish.
• When all the tubes are filled, spoon the remaining pesto over them. Cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes.
• Uncover the pan and sprinkle the manicotti with Parmesan. Bake, uncovered, for another 15 minutes, or until the Parmesan is melted and lightly browned.

CLASSIC MANICOTTI

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. First, make the marinara sauce. In a saucepan heat oil. Add onion and cook for 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 2 minutes more. Add tomatoes, pinch of sugar, salt and pepper and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes. Puree the mixture through the fine disk of a food mill and then return to the saucepan. Reduce for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, make your filling. In a bowl mix together ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, egg yolk, minced basil, parsley, nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste. Fill your manicotti tubes with the filling mixture. When all the tubes are filled place them in a baking dish. Spoon marinara sauce over the tubes and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. (Can be refrigerated for several hours or overnight at this point or may be frozen.) When ready to cook, place in the oven and bake, covered for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake for 5 to 10 minutes longer, or until bubbling and heated through. Serve each portion with a sprig of fresh basil.

SUN DRIED TOMATO PESTO (NO NUTS)

Steps:

• Place sun-dried tomatoes in a small pot and cover with water; bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let tomatoes soften, about 10 minutes. Drain.
• Blend tomatoes, basil, Parmesan cheese, garlic, and salt in a blender until mixed. Slowly add olive oil, about 1/4 cup at a time; blend until smooth.