Manicotti is one of my favorite dishes, and with a couple of tweaks here and there, we can make it a super healthy meal.

Stuffing Ingredients

The ingredients for the stuffing are very flexible. You can do anything you want, but you will need at least 2 or 3 cups of total filling.

• 1/2 to 1 cup fresh spinach
• 1/2 cup mushrooms
• 1/2  onion
• 1/2 to 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese

Shell Ingredients (for 4 shells)

Any type of flour will work, but the key to making this a much healthier dish is using freshly ground Einkorn wheat that has been soaked and sprouted. If you want a completely gluten free, grain free pasta, try Arrowroot powder instead.

• 1 cup of flour
• 1 Cup of water (fresh from the chopped spinach)
• 1 large egg

Tomato Sauce

Make three or four cups of your favorite tomato sauce.

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Make the Filling

STEP 1: Chop fresh spinach in a food processor, and squeeze out all the spinach juice. Save all the juice for the shells.

STEP 2: Chop the mushrooms and onions, and sauté them with the spinach in olive oil (or ghee or coconut oil, or any combination of such).

STEP 3: After the sautéed vegetables cool, mix them with the cheeses to make your filling. Place it in the fridge to keep it cool.

NOTE: This is great with any combination of cheeses, or even just one cheese. In addition, some people like to add an egg to make it firm.

Make the Shells (4 shells)

STEP 4: Whisk or blend the eggs, flour, and water. It will look like a thin pancake or crepe batter.

STEP 5: In a small skillet (about 8 inches or 20cm), melt some butter or healthy oil on low heat. Make sure the pan is well greased.

STEP 6: Pour about 1/4 of the batter into the skillet, until there is just enough to cover the bottom. Keep the heat low.

STEP 7: After several minutes, the batter will become dry and look like pasta. Remove the pasta from the pan, and repeat steps 5-7.

Build the Manicotti

STEP 8: Place about 1/4 of the filling on a flat pasta shell, and shape the filling so that you can roll the pasta to make a tube.

STEP 9:  Line a pan with tomato sauce, and place the filled pasta tubes in the tray. Cover with tomato sauce.

STEP 10: Bake in the oven at 375 F (190C) for about 45 minutes.