Manicotti is a type of pasta in Italian-American cuisine. It is named after the shape of pasta used for this dish, which means “little muffs” or “little sleeves” in Italian. Manicotti are large pasta tubes that are intended to be stuffed and baked. The filling is generally ricotta cheese mixed with chopped parsley, and possibly ground meat such as veal, but such pasta with a strictly meat filling is called cannelloni rather than manicotti. Manicotti can be extruded in tube form, or rolled from sheets of dough. While manicotti are pointed, cannelloni are smooth with flat ends. They are served topped with tomato sauce. Manicotti can be made with different variations of cheese and meat, and can be prepped ahead of time and kept in the refrigerator until ready to bake.