Sausage & Mushroom Stuffed Shells

One of my favorite combinations is sausage and mushrooms. I love sausage stuffed mushrooms, sausage and mushroom pizza, and now, sausage and mushroom stuffed shells. I love stuffed shells in general. They are a lot of work, but you can make a bunch ahead of time and then freeze them for a quick meal later. I used my homemade marinara sauce with them. If you haven't tried my recipe for homemade marinara, please do immediately. Once you start making your own sauce, you'll never go back to jarred sauce. I usually quadruple the recipe and jar it with quart sized mason jars.

1 box jumbo shells
2 cups marinara sauce

1.235 lb package of Italian sausage, casing removed

1 15 oz ricotta cheese
1 8 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1/2 cup romano cheese, grated
1 cup mozzarella cheese, plus more to sprinkle on top
1 egg, beaten
1 clove garlic, finely minced
1 tsp fresh basil, chopped
1 tsp fresh parsley, chopped
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
2 cups chopped mushrooms

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook shells as directed on package. Cook Italian sausage in skillet until brown and crumbly. In a mixer, beat cream cheese until soft. Add in ricotta, parmesan, romano, mozzarella, beaten egg, garlic, basil, parsley, salt and pepper until well combined. Mix in sausage and mushrooms. Fill each shell with mixture. Coat the bottom of a baking dish with enough marinara to cover the bottom. Lay shells on top of marinara. Cover shells with more marinara and sprinkle more mozzarella cheese. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30-35 minutes.