Molly: For singles or doubles, flash freezing the filled shells works great! You can take out as many shells as you need and aren’t faced with a huge amount of leftovers. For one, I usually do six shells in an 8 X 8 pan and have leftovers for lunch the next day.
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| Recipes |
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4 |
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| Servings |
6 |
12 |
18 |
24 |
30 |
36 |
| Ingredients | ||||||
| Uncooked chicken breast tenders or boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into strips |
1-1/2 lbs. |
3 lbs. |
4-1/2 lbs. |
6 lbs. |
7-1/2 lbs. |
9 lbs. |
| Garlic salt |
1 t. |
2 t. |
1 T. |
1 T. + 1 t. |
1 T. + 2 t. |
2 T. |
| Uncooked manicotti shells (8 oz. box = 14 shells) |
14 (1box) |
28 (2 boxes) |
42 (3 boxes) |
56 (4 boxes) |
70 (5 boxes) |
84 (6 boxes) |
| 28-30 oz. jar of spaghetti sauce |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
| Shredded mozzarella cheese |
2 C. |
4 C. |
6 C. |
8 C. |
10 C. |
12 C. |
| Optional additional toppings: olives, green peppers, mushrooms |
2.5 oz. |
5 oz. |
7.5 oz. |
10 oz. |
12.5 oz. |
15 oz. |
Assembly Directions:
Line counter top or large cookie sheet with waxed paper. Place chicken on waxed paper and sprinkle with garlic salt. Insert seasoned chicken into uncooked manicotti shells, stuffing from each end of shell to fill if necessary.
Freezing Directions:
Option 1: Spread 1/3 of spaghetti sauce in ungreased 13X9X2 baking dish. Arrange filled shells on sauce in dish. Top with remaining sauce. Sprinkle with cheese (and option toppings, if desired). Wrap unbaked dish tightly with foil, label and freeze.
Option 2: Place filled shells back in plastic forms from box or on cookie sheet and flash freeze. When frozen, put in freezer bag. Seal, label and freeze.
Serving Directions:
Option 1: Unwrap & bake right from freezer at 350 degrees for 1.5 hours. If already thawed, about 1 hour.
Option 2: Assemble as above, using as much sauce and as many shells as needed. Seven shells fit nicely in an 8X8 pan. Repackage and freeze any remaining sauce for next time.
Comments:
I don’t use any additional toppings for this recipe. I’ve used boneless, skinless chicken thighs, but didn’t like it as well. For singles or doubles, Option 2 – flash freezing the filled shells – works great. You can take out as many shells as you need and aren’t faced with a huge amount of leftovers. For one, I usually do six shells in an 8X8 pan and have the leftovers for lunch the next day.
Nutritional Info: without optional toppings
Per Serving: 465 Calories; 15g Fat (30.3% calories from fat); 40g Protein; 39g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 103mg Cholesterol; 1067mg Sodium.
Exchanges: 2-1/2 Grain (Starch); 4-1/2 Lean Meat; 1-1/2 Fat.
Carol Santee
Carol is the co-author of the Big Book of Freezer Cooking and the author of 30 Day Gourmet’s Slow Cooker Freezer Favorites, Freezer Lunches To Go and Healthy Freezer Cooking eBooks. She is a computer information specialist and works for a computer software company.
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