If you haven’t visited Jimmy’s in Dallas yet, it’s time to add it to your list. This Italian market and deli, located just a few miles northeast of downtown, offers an incredible selection of authentic Italian products—from freshly made pizza dough to premium olive oils and imported canned tomatoes. You’ll also find a variety of Italian cheeses, cookies, and specialty goods, making it a must-visit for food lovers.

We always enjoy wandering through the narrow aisles, discovering unique ingredients to bring home. Our usual haul includes pizza dough, pepperoni, sopressata (a flavorful Italian salami), and a generous wedge of Parmesan.

Bret has a particular love for their cannoli, both the classic and chocolate varieties. On our last visit, he picked up some Parmesan and a box of manicotti, giving me everything I needed to create this delicious Saucy Spinach Manicotti—made with the finest ingredients from Jimmy’s!

This dish came together fairly easily, though, as anyone who has made manicotti knows, filling the shells can be a bit messy and time-consuming. A helpful trick is to fill one end of the cooked shell, then turn it around and fill the other—this helps prevent tearing and makes the process smoother.

I found that the filling needed a little extra salt, but I recommend tasting it before adding the eggs to adjust the seasoning to your preference. Personally, I prefer a saltier flavor.

The filling turned out rich and creamy, and the addition of spinach made me feel like I was getting some greens alongside all that delicious cheese.

Next time, I plan to use lightly sautéed fresh spinach instead of frozen, as I found the frozen variety a bit stringy. If you do opt for frozen spinach, be sure to squeeze out as much excess moisture as possible—wrapping it in a paper towel and wringing it out two or three times works well.

This recipe was originally inspired by Rachael Ray, but I made several adjustments to suit my own taste. If you’d like to make a homemade marinara, her recipe includes instructions for that. However, I prefer using my favorite bottled marinara for convenience.

We really enjoyed this Saucy Spinach Manicotti, and I’ll likely make it again. The recipe can easily be halved if needed, but any leftovers freeze well, making it a great make-ahead option.