Craving something savoury? This easy peasy low FODMAP cheese and spinach manicotti will be a menu staple in no time!
Keep it friendly
This easy cheese and spinach manicotti will light up your taste buds! Check out the notes below for tips on keeping this recipe FODMAP-friendly!
First up, leeks. Monash recently retested the green leaves of a leek and upped their low FODMAP serving size from 3/4 cups to 1 full cup (100 g). Monash doesn’t list a maximum serving size anymore, which means you can use larger amounts without adding anything significant to your FODMAP load.
Next up, parmesan cheese. According to the Monash app, parmesan only has trace amounts of FODMAPs, so this won’t add anything to your FODMAP load, either.
Ricotta cheese, on the other hand, is only low FODMAP in servings of 2 tbsp (40 g) per sitting. Servings of 1/2 a cup (120 g) or more are high in lactose and should be avoided during the elimination and re-challenge phases.
We’ll be using a bunch of ricotta for this recipe, so you’ll need to use lactose-free ricotta cheese for this recipe.
We’ll also be using mozzarella cheese. According to Monash, mozzarella cheese is low FODMAP in servings of 1/4 cup per sitting. Servings of 4 cups (630 g) or more are high in lactose.
We’ll be using 1 cup of mozzarella cheese for this recipe, which works out to 40 g of mozzarella per serving. This is within Monash’s recommended range.
Next up, frozen spinach. If you’re using English spinach, this won’t contribute anything to your FODMAP load. If you’re using baby spinach, according to the Monash app, 1.5 cups (75 g) per sitting. Servings of 2.75 cups (150 g) or more are high in the FODMAP fructan.
The FODMAP math for this spinach and cheese manicotti was calculated using English spinach (since that’s what I had). If you use frozen baby spinach, don’t forget to adjust your FODMAP math.
We’ll also be using low FODMAP marinara sauce. You can grab my low FODMAP marinara sauce recipe or you can use this Monash-certified marinara sauce from Fody Foods Co.
Last but not least, manicotti shells. If you’re in the elimination or re-challenge phase of the low FODMAP program, you’ll need to use gluten-free shells.
According to Monash University, gluten-free pasta is low FODMAP in servings of 1 cup (145 g) per serving. Servings of 1.5 cups (217 g) are high in the FODMAP fructan.
One serving of this recipe includes 2 shells, which works out to 33 g of pasta per serving. This is well within Monash’s recommended range.
The remaining ingredients won’t add anything noteworthy to your FODMAP load.
FODMAP Math
Can’t wait to dig into this savoury low FODMAP cheese and spinach manicotti (can’t blame you!). Check out the notes below to see how many servings of each FODMAP group are in two stuffed manicotti.
- Fructose – 0.8
- Lactose – 0
- Fructan – 0.2
- GOS – 0
- Polyol – 0
Low FODMAP Cheese and Spinach Manicotti
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
This rich and savoury low FODMAP cheese and spinach manicotti will be your next family hit!
Ingredients
- 15 oz lactose-free ricotta cheese
- 1/2 cup leeks – green part only, minced
- 1 lg egg, lightly beaten
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley, minced
- 1/2 cup frozen spinach, thawed + squeezed
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese, divided
- 1 cup parmesan cheese, divided
- 2 cups low FODMAP marinara sauce
- 1/2 cup water
- 8 low FODMAP manicotti shells
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
- Combine the ricotta cheese, leeks, eggs, parsley, spinach, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Then stir in 3/4 cup of the mozzarella and parmesan cheese.
- Mix the marinara sauce and water in a small bowl and spread a few spoonfuls over the bottom of a 9 x 13″ baking dish.
- Fill the uncooked manicotti shells with the cheese mixture and place the shells in the baking dish. Pour the remaining marinara sauce over the noodles.
- Cover the baking dish with foil and bake until the pasta is tender (about 50 minutes). Then sprinkle the manicotti with the remaining mozzarella and parmesan cheese and bake, uncovered, until the cheese is melted (about 10 – 15 minutes).
Notes
Recommended low FODMAP serving – 2 manicotti shells per sitting
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Category: dinner
- Method: baking
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You might also like one of these:
- Low FODMAP Baked Ziti – Curb your comfort food cravings with this delicious baked ziti! Packed with rich, savoury flavour it will be a family favourite in no time!
- Low FODMAP Skillet Gnocchi – Tossed in a homemade cream sauce and topped with melted cheese, this low FODMAP skillet gnocchi will have even your pickiest eaters coming back for seconds!
- Low FODMAP Beef Bourguignon – Looking for a dinner that’s dressed to impress? This dangerously easy beef bourguignon will be the talk of your table!
If you like this post don’t forget to share it! Follow me on YouTube @flipyourleaf for a ton of videos on understanding FODMAPs, IBS mechanics, and how to feel safe in your body. Together we’ll get the low FODMAP diet down to a science!
