Manicotti Filling

What's this? It is the leftover filling from these {Vegetable Cheese Stuffed Manicotti}. Although we had cooked extra noodles than called for in the recipe, we still had some leftover filling remaining. So instead of wasting it we put it into a ramekin and baked it alongside the manicotti as well. There was raw egg in the mixture, so it did require cooking. It was baked for the same amount of time as the manicotti. This mixture contained chopped vegetables, cottage and mozzarella cheese, egg, and sauce. I ate the leftover filling once all the manicotti was gone. I just ate it as is, though I easily could have cooked up some more pasta (any shape really) and enjoyed it with that, or on bread, or on rice. It's strange, but I actually enjoyed it more than the manicotti. I guess the filling was the best part of the dish, so eating a dish full of filling was even better. I just like to post these little things to remind you never to waste anything that is perfectly edible, and sometimes it will turn out better than expected. Everything salvageable can always be re-purposed! 

Vegetable Cheese Stuffed Manicotti

This is a very tasty vegetarian pasta dish with a bit more elegance. It requires a few extra steps of preparation, much like making a lasagna. However, the effort is totally worth it. To shave off some preparation time, use a can or bottle of sauce and use a food processor to cut up the vegetables. This could also be prepared in advance and baked shortly before serving. Leftovers are excellent reheated. The amounts given for vegetables are only relative and may be varied - just not the vegetables cook down a lot and you barely even notice them in the cheesy filling! This should make enough filling for fourteen manicotti shells, but we have discovered that extra filling is delicious if baked in a ramekin. 

Vegetable Cheese Stuffed Manicotti
1 small can tomato sauce
14 manicotti shells, cooked and drained
1 teaspoon oil
1 medium shredded carrot (1/2 cup)
1/2 shredded zucchini (1/2 cup) 
1/2 cup sliced mushrooms (one container)
1/2 small onion, chopped (1/4 cup)
2 cups cottage or ricotta cheese
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded

Spoon a small amount of sauce into the bottom of a rectangular baking pan.
Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Cook the vegetables until tender-crisp. Stir in cottage cheese. Fill each manicotti shell with this mixture, then place in the baking dish. Spoon sauce over top and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Bake at 350◦F for about 40 minutes until hot.