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Easy One Pot Spinach Broccoli Ricotta Stuffed Shells: Jumbo pasta shells and broccoli are boiled together until perfectly al dente. Then, with milk and a handful of melty cheeses and creamy ricotta, everything comes together into a rich, cheesy filling—no extra steps needed. Fresh basil and a touch of lemon zest add brightness and flavor. It’s simple, satisfying, and sure to become a regular in your weeknight dinner rotation. Totally delicious!
When I was in New York, I enjoyed one of the yummiest baked pastas. It was a lucious individual serving of baked stuffed shells in the cheesiest mascarpone truffle sauce. If you’re in New York, try the baked shells from Crane Club for sure.
While I was inspired by that wonderful meal, I wanted to create my own variation with lighter, springtime flavors. And as much as I love a hint of truffle, it can be a bit pricey—so I swapped it out for bright lemon zest and fresh broccoli instead! It’s such a delicious combo, and honestly, one you can enjoy any time of year.
What I really loved were the jumbo stuffed shells—and just how much cheesy sauce they were baked in. If there was ever a time to use the word divine, it’s to describe that dish. Delish!
I did my best to recreate it as an easy, one-pot pasta with lots of cheesy sauce and an “unstuffed,” but honestly still stuffed, shell situation. With three cheeses and a few generous handfuls of chopped broccoli, the shells practically stuff themselves. I added a little kick with some chipotle, but cayenne or chili flakes work just as well if that’s more your thing!
We loved this easy, peasy, one pot pasta! It will not let you down!
Let’s get into the details
Here are the ingredients:
- Jumbo pasta shells
- Broccoli
- Whole milk or heavy cream
- Spicy cheddar or white cheddar cheese
- Provolone cheese
- Whole milk ricotta cheese
- Baby spinach
- Garlic powder
- Onion powder
- Paprika
- Chipotle chili powder – or use chili flakes for some added spice
- Fresh basil
- Lemon zest
- Black pepper
Here are the steps
Step 1: boil the jumbo shells and broccoli
Use a pot large enough to hold both the jumbo shells and the broccoli. Fill it with about 4 cups of water.
Once the water has come to a boil, add the shells and the broccoli. Boil together until al dente, do not drain the pasta.
The water in the pot will help create the cheese sauce, along with the cheeses and ricotta cheese.
Step 2: stir in all the remaining ingredients
Now add the cream or milk. This will create the cream sauce. Then for the cheeses, I love using a mix. My favorite blend for this pasta is a spicy rattlesnake cheddar cheese, or you can use a sharp white cheddar if you prefer. Then something super melty like provolone, or another option could be Havarti. Just some kind of mix with rich flavors.
The ricotta is the key here. The pasta I enjoyed used mascarpone, which would be a wonderful substitute. You could even use cream cheese! But I always have ricotta in the fridge, so that’s what I used to make this dish. Add the spinach now too.
Step 3: seasonings
To season, I like to use garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, and chipotle chili powder. As I mentioned above, you can also use chili flakes or cayenne for some extra heat. The spices give the pasta a nice balance of flavor.
And then lots of fresh basil and lemon zest. The lemon is so yummy with the ricotta cheese.
And once you add the basil and lemon zest – ah, the pasta will immediately smell so good!
Step 4: serve
Serve the unstuffed but stuffed jumbo shells directly out of the pot, then top with fresh basil and lemon,
I added simple roasted chicken to balance the dish. Of course, a big salad is a wonderful option, too! Enjoy!
Looking for other one-pot recipes? Here are my favorites:
French Onion Pasta with Crispy Prosciutto
One Skillet White Chicken Chili Bake
Healthier Homemade One Pot Hamburger Helper
Creamy Sun-Dried Tomato Chicken Pasta
Lastly, if you make this one pot Spinach Broccoli Ricotta Stuffed Shells, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And, of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
One Pot Spinach Broccoli Ricotta Stuffed Shells
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 738 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 pound jumbo pasta shells
- 3 cups chopped broccoli
- 1 cup heavy cream or whole milk
- 2 cups shredded spicy cheddar or white cheddar cheese
- 1 1/2 cups shredded provolone
- 4 ounces whole milk ricotta cheese (cream cheese or mascarpone)
- 2 cups baby spinach
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
- 1/2 cup fresh chopped basil
- 1-2 tablespoons lemon zest
- salt and black pepper
Instructions
- 1. In a large pot, bring 4 cups of water to a boil over high heat. Add 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, the pasta, and broccoli. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 minutes. Do not drain the water.2. Stir in the milk. Add the cheeses, spinach, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, and chipotle, and stir until melted and creamy. Remove from the heat. Stir in the basil and lemon zest. Season with salt and pepper. If the sauce feels thick, add ¼ cup of milk to thin.3. Divide the pasta and broccoli between bowls. Top with basil and lemon.
This post was originally published on April 7, 2025
I’m confused because 4 cups of water is not enough to boil any pasta in?
Hi Christine,
As long as you follow the recipe as written and make sure to stir the pasta a lot while cooking, it will cook:) I hope you love this dish! xx
I found this recipe when looking for stuffed shells that wouldn’t be a pain to stuff and it did not disappoint! Very simple and easy! The first time I made it, it turned out a bit too salty due to the saltiness of the cheeses I used, but the second time (and each additional) was perfect. I used vegan substitutions for the milk and cheese and this is now a go-to for when I need something quick and easy or if I’m trying to impress!
Hey Fade,
Wonderful!! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe:) Love to hear it turned out nicely for you!🌺
My family loves this meal. So quick and easy to make
Love to hear this, Denise! I appreciate you making this dish and your comment! xx
I made this tonight for dinner. I followed the recipe exactly and the consistency came out perfect. I always shred my own cheese. My son and I who love your recipes both agree that maybe the pasta size should be changed. Maybe to a penne?
Thanks so much, Antoinette! So glad to hear this dish turned out well for you. A penne would work nicely here! xx
Wow. So good and so EASY! dinner was ready in less than 20 minutes and everyone LOVED it. My 34 year old husband down to my 2 year old. Will definitely make a gain. Maybe add bacon next time?! So delicious
Hey Sarah,
Yay!! Thank you so much for making this recipe and sharing your feedback, I’m so glad to hear it turned out well for you!🌷 Happy Thursday!
This was SO good!! I had to cook the noodles a tad longer, not much though and I added some artichoke hearts mostly because my lemon wasn’t very zesty.
It was so fresh but creamy, it’ll be made again in my house for sure!!
Hi Kristen,
Happy Sunday! I’m thrilled to hear this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a lot for making it! xx
Hello,
I just made this and it turned out good. Followed the directions to a tee and the texture turned out perfect for everything. I just made sure the water was rolling boiling to start with and I didn’t turn down the boil while adding the rest of the ingredients until removing from heat. Maybe it hasn’t turned out good for quite a few people because they aren’t boiling the whole time it’s cooking? I don’t know. I like it though. The only thing I feel like it could use is a tiny more flavor depth.
Thanks so much, Amy! I appreciate you trying this dish and sharing what worked well for you. So glad it was enjoyed! xx
This was not springy, it was so heavy. Also lacked flavor. In order to thicken the sauce I had to boil it longer than the recipe says and then the pasta was beyond Al dente.
Hi Georgie,
So sorry to hear this recipe was not enjoyed, thanks for giving it a try! Have a nice week!
Just made this recipe and reviewed all the comments before doing so. That said, I found the water to cheese ratio was spot on. I did find that my shells weren’t all seperated while cooking, so some were harder than others after 8 minutes. No big deal, I added the milk and cooked a bit more before adding cheese. Cheese melted JUST fine – but I didn’t use as much cheese as what was called for. I did half store shredded and half I shredded on my own. Broccoli wasn’t mushy and I added roasted chicken and spinach at the end. I also added a few red pepper flakes for heat. All in all, I didn’t have as much trouble as others seemed to have and it came out delicious! Wish I knew to make sure my shells weren’t nesting in each other while cooking.
Hey Lindsay,
Wonderful! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe and your comment, love to hear it was a winner! xx
This recipe didn’t work out for me. The cheese wouldn’t melt into the milk mixture so it was like a watery soup with big clumps of cheese that wouldn’t melt. After a good 20 minutes of stirring to try to get it to work, I called it. Afterward, I looked into why this didn’t work and it turns out there’s a whole art to getting cheese to melt into a sauce, which I was not aware of. I think if I had put small handfuls of cheese in at a time, that would have worked better. Now I know for next time.
Hi Kelly,
Thanks for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback. Sorry to hear you had issues with your cheese melting. I also always freshly shred my own cheese, it melts much better that way. I hope this helps! xx
Hi Tieghan,
Made this dish for dinner tonight…. outstanding. Perfect amount of heat, and so creamy. I did add the broccoli in at end so it was crunchier. Sooo easy!! Thank you…. just love all your recipes.
Cheryl
Hey Cheryl,
Amazing! I appreciate you giving this recipe a try, so glad it turned out nicely for you! Have the best weekend!🌸
Girl, this is one of the worst recipes
I’ve ever made. Are you not testing these before posting? I love a free recipe but it isn’t free when you have to throw all the ingredients in the trash. The only way I could could get this recipe to come together was to transfer to a baking dish and bake in oven after thickening sauce. I do NOT recommend making this. Watery, no flavor, poorly executed recipe.
Hi Lindsay,
Thanks for trying this recipe, so sorry it was so awful. Of course, I tested it several times before sharing and we all loved it:) Again, my apologies it was not enjoyed.
This was a huge fail. Way too watery (I did start with 4 cups as directed). Would’ve waited to put broccoli. Just a giant mushy mess.
Hi Carrie,
So sorry to hear this. How much water did you end up using? Please let me know if I can help at all. xx
Made this for dinner tonight, paired it with jalapeño cheddar bread! Yummy!
Hi Jessica,
Happy Monday! Thanks for giving this recipe a try, love to hear it turned out well for you! Have the best week:)
This looks delicious! I love all your recipes, but I’d love to see a few delicious recipes that were less calorie heavy. Most of your recipes include high calorie ingredients such as heavy cream, full fat cheeses and butter. Obviously, those are great tasting ingredients, I just cannot eat that many calories without consequences on the scale.
Thanks so much for sharing your feedback, Karen!
This turned out nicely for me. One key step that I think is worth clarifying in the recipe – that I think is where the negative reviewers may have gone wrong – is that it is key not to cover the pot when pasta and broccoli are boiling. You need pasta to cook and water to evaporate, so when you add the cream, cheese, etc. there is very little water left. You have to be careful at that stage with your temperature and stirring so you don’t start having noodles burn to the bottom!
Hope that helps 🙂
Thanks so much, Jessica! So glad this recipe was enjoyed, I appreciate you making it! Happy Sunday!🌼🐰