This gluten-free creamy beef and shells recipe is a family favorite, perfect for a busy weeknight meal. The savory beef sauce coats each shell, creating a satisfying dish everyone will enjoy. It’s simple to make and comes together in under 30 minutes. It pairs perfectly with New York Bakery’s Gluten Free Texas Toast. Plus, it’s a cozy, no-fuss dinner that even your picky eaters will ask for again.
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(NY Bakery sponsored this post. All delicious opinions on this gluten-free five-cheese Texas toast are my own.)
If you want a quick and easy family meal, my family loves my new gluten free creamy beef and shells recipe. This recipe has the right amount of cheese and sauce, making it perfect for dipping! My favorite bread to dip is NY Bakery’s Texas Toast. They make two flavors of their Gluten Free Texas Toast, Five Cheese, and Original Garlic.
You may recall that I used the original flavor to make our Gluten-Free Texas Toast Stuffing for Thanksgiving this year. There are so many delicious things you can make with this Texas toast to make, including:
- Grilled Cheese with my Cheddar Tomato Soup.
- Dip it in this incredible Gluten Free Alfredo Sauce.
- Dip it in soups like this Unstuffed Pepper Soup.
- Serve it with this Gluten Free Marinara Sauce and your favorite gluten free pasta.
If you love dinner recipes, you can make them in under 30 minutes; I have a ton of gluten free dinner recipes for you to try! One of my new favorites is this Gluten Free Cajun Chicken Pasta, which has a creamy Cajun sauce to dip the garlic bread into!
Allergen Information:
This homemade creamy beef and shells dinner recipe is gluten-free, egg-free, nut-free, and oat-free.
One of the things I love about these two new Texas Toast products, besides the fact that they don’t taste gluten-free, is that they are certified gluten-free and produced in a dedicated gluten-free facility, mitigating any risk of cross-contamination. Safety is a huge factor for me, and I know it is for you all as well!
NY Bakery has over a decade of recipe and production research, and they put a lot of thought and testing into their new gluten-free Texas toast products. New York Bakery definitely raised the bar in gluten-free bread with its new patent-pending, first-of-its-kind dough recipe that preserves the fluffy Texas toast texture, volume, and structural integrity of the products that consumers know and love.
Ingredient Notes:
For the full list of ingredients and amounts, please go to the recipe card below.
- NY Bakery Five Cheese Texas Toast – This recipe calls for my favorite Texas toast. As of this Fall, New York Bakery Gluten Free Texas Toast is available at major grocery stores, including Publix, Walmart, and Kroger Brands, followed by Albertsons in 2025.
- Ground Beef – I used ground bison for a less fatty beef. Any ground meat works well in this recipe.
- Onions – I used yellow onions.
- Gluten Free Pasta Shells – Any type of gluten free pasta works in this recipe. I used chickpea pasta shells.
- Beef Broth – Use regular or low-sodium beef broth.
- Tomato Sauce – I used unseasoned tomato sauce.
- Garlic – Use cloves, frozen cubed garlic, or minced jarred garlic.
- Ricotta Cheese – I used full-fat ricotta cheese.
- Parmesan Cheese – Parmesan or a parmesan blend cheese adds delicious flavors.
- Seasonings – I used dried basil, oregano, salt, and pepper.
Tips For Success
1. Do not overcook your gluten free pasta. A famous chef shared some incredible tips to prevent mushy gluten free pasta.
2. Cook the pasta separately from the shells and beef and add it in after it is cooked. I do have several recipes on the blog where the pasta cooks in the sauce, but this recipe turns out better when they are cooked separately.
How to Make Cheesy Beef and Shells (Step-By-Step):
Step 1: Add cooking oil to a pot or Dutch oven and heat it on medium heat. Add diced onion and the ground meat. Add the dried basil and oregano. Salt and pepper to taste.
Step 2: Continue to cook the meat over medium heat. Use a wooden kitchen spoon to break up the ground beef as it cooks. Add in the garlic and cook the mixture until the meat is no longer pink.
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Step 3: Add the tomato sauce and broth to the pan and set the temperature to low. Cook for 5 minutes.
Step 4: Add the ricotta and parmesan cheeses. Stir the sauce until the cheeses melt. Cover and simmer while the pasta cooks.
Step 5: Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the shells per package cooking instructions. Every gluten free pasta brand has a different cook time, depending on the ingredients. Drain the pasta in a colander and shake out all of the excess water.
Step 6: Pour the cooked pasta into the meaty sauce mixture. Mix well. Serve it hot with a spoonful of grated parmesan cheese on top.
Step 7: Cook the Texas toast in your air fryer or oven. I cooked the toast for 9 minutes at 375º F. You can also bake the Texas toast in the oven at 425º F for 10-11 minutes.
Storage Tips:
Store leftover pasta in an airtight container in your refrigerator. If you have leftover Texas toast, store it in a separate container. Reheat the pasta in a microwave oven. Reheat the Texas toast in the air fryer for 3 minutes or in the oven for 5 minutes.
The leftovers will keep fresh for up to 4 days. I do not recommend freezing leftovers because the pasta will not hold up well to freezing.
More Gluten Free Dinner Recipes:
I have lots of delicious gluten-free dinner recipes. You can see all of my gluten-free beef dinner recipes to find more recipe ideas.
Love This Recipe?
If you made and enjoyed this recipe, I would be incredibly grateful if you could leave a comment below. This will help others know this recipe is delicious. Thank you!
Gluten Free Shells and Beef Pasta
Ingredients
Method
- Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to a pot or Dutch oven and heat it on medium heat. Add diced 1/3 cup onion and the 1 pound lean ground beef. Add the 2 teaspoons dried basil 1 teaspoon dried oregano. salt and pepper to taste.
- Continue cooking the meat over medium heat, breaking up the ground beef with a wooden spoon as you do so. Add the 3 cloves garlic and cook the mixture until the meat is no longer pink.
- Add the 15 ounces tomato sauce and 1/3 cup beef or bone broth to the pan and set the temperature to medium low. Cook for 5 minutes.
- Add the 1/3 cup ricotta cheese and 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese. Stir the sauce until the cheeses melt. Cover and turn the heat down to simmer while the pasta cooks.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the shells per package cooking instructions. Every gluten free pasta brand has a different cook time, depending on the ingredients. Drain the pasta in a colander and shake out all of the excess water. Do not overcook your gluten free pasta. A famous chef shared some incredible tips to prevent mushy gluten free pasta.
- Cook the Texas toast in your air fryer or oven. I cooked the toast for 9 minutes at 375º F. You can also bake the Texas toast in the oven at 425º F for 10-11 minutes.
- Pour the cooked pasta into the meaty sauce mixture, mixing well. Serve hot, with a spoonful of grated parmesan cheese on top.
Nutrition
Notes
- I used Jovial gluten free pasta to make this recipe, but any gluten free pasta brand will work. Each brand has slightly different cooking instructions, so cook your pasta according to box directions.
- Store leftover pasta in an airtight container in your refrigerator. If you have leftover Texas toast, store it in a separate container. Reheat the pasta in a microwave oven. Reheat the Texas toast in the air fryer for 3 minutes or the oven for 5 minutes. The leftovers will keep fresh for up to 4 days. I do not recommend freezing leftovers because the pasta will not hold up well to freezing.
Nutritional Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.
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Sandi, this is delicious! I made it tonight and instead of cooking the pasta separately, I added it to the cooked hamburger and added extra water (because I’m lazy sometimes!) and adjusted the seasoning to our tastes. Thank you!
I love you made it a one pot dish, Dee. Great idea. Thank you for coming back to let readers know they can try this as well.