Rich and creamy cashew-tofu ricotta is blended with fresh spinach, stuffed into tender little pasta pockets and smothered in a quick garlicky tomato sauce to make these vegan stuffed shells.
I'm beginning to think the combination of tofu and cashews is the answer to everything. I don't even think of it as being a thing half the time. I just start working a recipe around either cashews or tofu, and before I know it, the other half of the duo demands its presence be made. It's really quite a magical combination.
I was telling a friend about this the other day and I think she thought I was nuts. Actually, "that doesn't sound very good" were her exact words. She's kind of right. Ten years ago I would've thought blended up cashews and tofu was the most disgusting thing on earth. Live and learn.
In case you haven't tried one of my cashew tofu combo recipes yet, and you're wondering what it does taste like, here's the answer: ricotta cheese. That's it! Rich, creamy, unbelievably vegan, ricotta cheese. For a while I was big on tofu ricotta (before I discovered cashews). Tofu ricotta is pretty good. It tastes like low-fat ricotta non-vegan. Tofu-cashew ricotta just tastes like regular old fatty ricotta, which is better if you ask me.
So I had to go with tofu-cashew ricotta for these vegan stuffed shells. After all, it is the holidays, and holiday dinners demand the best.
To juice things up even more I threw some spinach into the filling. My vegan stuffed shells florentine turned out to be delightful and way cooler to look at than regular old cheese filled shells, what with all the pretty little green flecks in there.
These were total comfort food and exactly the kind of hearty meal I crave when it's cold outside. Oh, and it's exactly the kind of meal you want to feed your family for the holidays. Even your non-vegan family. In fact, especially your non-vegan family. They'll be impressed!
FAQ & Tips for Making Awesome Vegan Stuffed Shells
- Save time the day of serving by making the sauce and filling a day in advance.
- Don't feel like making the sauce? Feel free to use your favorite store-bought vegan tomato sauce.
- Want a tofu-free version of the filling? It could work if you double the cashews, or try subbing white beans or steamed cauliflower. I haven't tested any of these versions though!
- Want a cashew-free version of the filling? Try doubling the tofu. Again, I haven't tried this, so no promises!
- For extra cheesy shells, top yours with some store-bought vegan mozzarella shreds or Parmesan.
Check out my video for some guidance on how to make these vegan stuffed shells!
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Vegan Stuffed Shells Florentine
Ingredients
- 6 ounces dried jumbo pasta shells (about 20 shells)
For the Quick Tomato Sauce
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ large onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 (28 ounce or 794 gram) can crushed tomatoes
- ½ tablespoon organic granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper, plus more to taste
- ½ cup fresh basil leaves, torn and lightly packed
For the Vegan Ricotta Florentine
- ½ large onion, coarsely chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 cup raw cashews soaked in water 4-8 hours, rinsed and drained
- ½ cup unflavored and unsweetened soy or almond milk
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- 1 (14 ounce or 400 gram) package extra firm tofu, drained and broken into 5-6 large chunks
- ½ teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper, plus more to taste
- 2 cups fresh spinach leaves, coarsely chopped and lightly packed
Instructions
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Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta shells and cook them according to the package directions.
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Drain the pasta into a colander, then return it to the pot and toss it with a few dashes of olive oil. Set aside.
Make the Quick Tomato Sauce
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Coat the bottom of a medium saucepan with oil and place it over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the onion. Sweat the onion until softened, about 5 minutes.
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Add the garlic and sauté it with the onion 1 minute more, until very fragrant.
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Stir in the crushed tomatoes, sugar, oregano, salt and pepper. Bring the mixture to a simmer and lower the heat.
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Allow the sauce to simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
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Stir in the basil and remove the sauce from the heat. Taste test and season with additional salt and pepper if desired.
Make the Vegan Ricotta Florentine
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Place the onion, garlic, cashews, milk and lemon juice into bowl of food processor. Blend until smooth, stopping to scrape down sides of bowl as needed.
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Add the tofu, salt and pepper. Pulse the machine until a thick and slightly chunky, ricotta-like texture is achieved, again, stopping to scrape down the sides of bowl as needed.
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If some space remains in food processor bowl, add the spinach and pulse until finely chopped and well blended. Otherwise, transfer mixture to a bowl and stir the spinach in by hand.
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Taste-test and season the mixture with additional salt and pepper to taste.
Make the Stuffed Shells Florentine
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Preheat the oven to 400º. Coat the bottom of a 9 inch by 9 inch baking dish or 10 inch round oven-safe skillet with about half of sauce.
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Stuff the shells with the ricotta mixture and arrange them in a single layer in the baking dish or skillet. Top with the remaining sauce.
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Cover and bake the shells for 20-25 minutes, until the sauce is bubbly.
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Remove the shells from the oven and allow them to sit for 5 minutes before serving.
This looks incredible! I actually make a very similar recipe, but I've never added cashews. I can see why that would instantly make it creamier and more delicious! Brilliant!
I love vegan stuffed shells! Which is odd, considering that I never did like ricotta in my pre-vegan days. But these look heavenly! Have you tried freezing them and then baking? They look like they'd make a good prep-ahead meal.
Can't wait to try these! Thanks for sharing, Alissa!
Thanks Nichole! I haven't tried freezing them, but I have frozen pasta dishes before as well as similar tofu/cashew cheese mixtures and both worked, so I'm betting this would too!
We made this tonight. It was very comforting and delicious! Thank you!
Thank you for letting me know! Very glad to hear it! :)
Made these tonight. Awesomeness
Thanks Brenda! Glad you enjoyed them!
How long does this keep cooked and refrigerated?
It should be good for two or three days.
This looks amazing! What could you use in place of the tofu? Soy free substitute?
Thank you! You could try using some extra cashews or steamed cauliflower. I'd love to hear how it works out if you try!
Beets, walnuts, pine nuts, or garbanzos could work!
Delicious!! I doubled the recipe and had leftovers the next day. Reheated well. Very satisfying meal that didn't feel heavy. Definitely a keeper. Thank you!
I'm so happy to hear that!! Thanks Gayle!
Loved your vegan ricotta. It is the best. I used it in eggplant lasagne. SUPER!!
Oh that sounds delicious!! I'm glad you enjoyed it!
You have revolutionized my diet! Thanks so much for all the plant based, whole food recipes... The diversity of the cultures represented is amazing... Kerp up the great work in helping us reshape our lives and still keeping it delicious...
Yay!! I'm so glad you're enjoying the recipes! Thank Bobby!
Really good vegan entree. I was looking for a make ahead dish for company, and this fits the bill nicely. I used manicotti and they worked nicely. Filled them with a cake decorating bag.
I bet this was great with manicotti! Glad you enjoyed it! Thank Lin!
I made this tonight! It was amazing and my husband loved it!
Thanks for sharing,
Monica
Yay!! I'm glad you both enjoyed it!
Was very yummo but I don’t know why I followed everything to a T yet ended up with to much stuffing and way to little sauce ?
I made this tonight and it was SO good, my boyfriend(who's not vegan haha) loved it. thank you
Yay!! I'm glad you both enjoyed it!
This was excellent. I ended up using pacific’s no-chicken chicken broth in place of the soy milk and added more garlic (because that’s how I roll:)) and threw sautéed mushrooms on top. I think I overstuffed the shells but it worked. Excellent! I do believe this dish would freeze quite well.
Wonderful improvization! They do freeze well. Enjoy!
I love this. I’ve made it a few times now and I’m making it for a big family meal tomorrow. They are all omnivores but I bet they will love this. I plan to make the sauce and boil the pasta tonight then stuff the shells but keep it in the fridge tonight and bung it in the oven tomorrow. Do you think this will work? Thanks again and keep up the good work :-)
I'm so glad you're enjoying it!! And sorry for the late response! It might be too late now, but you can definitely prep this ahead of time and bake it the next day. I actually usually make extra, assemble the whole dish, and freeze it for later before baking.
These were amazing! Makes for awesome leftovers as well
So yummy good! Thank you so much!
This is one of the best vegan recipes I have made. Leftover filling freezes and thaws nicely. When my daughter visited, she loved the stuffed shells and wondered if it could be used in calzones. I intend to give this a try. Meanwhile, it is the 'ricotta substitute' that I will use for everything. I don't think there is any vegan ricotta that is better!
Yay!! I'm so glad you like it! And you can absolutely use the ricotta for just about anything! Calzones would be great - I did a stromboli a few months ago (that hasn't made it to the blog yet) and loved it. :)
What a great idea to use tofu like this.
I will learn and try it.
I also share the vegan recipe of traditional chinese foods in my blog.
But I never saw this dish before. It's amazing.
Thanks for your sharing.
Tofu is great in vegan ricotta! I hope you enjoy it!
This is the best vegan ricotta recipe out there! Absolutely delicious! Easy. Foolproof! My kind of recipe :)
Yay! I'm glad you like it!
Looks incredible! Love your recipes. With this one though, do you have any problems with the acidic tomato sauce in your cast iron as shown in your video? I love my cast iron but find I can’t use it with tomato-based (acidic) sauces because they erode the seasoning. Curious as to your experience. Thank you!
Thank you so much! I don't have a problem cooking tomatoes in the particular skillet shown in the video, but that one is very well seasoned. From what I understand, it's fine to use use acidic ingredients in cast iron that's got a nice coating on it (and it even adds some dietary iron to the food). I have a couple of larger skillets that I can't seem to get as good a coating on, so I don't try it with those.
Hi there! I don't have time to soak my cashews to make this tonight, but I do have a Vitamix, will that work?
Thanks!
Perhaps! A vitamix might be powerful enough. You could also try boiling them for 15 minutes - that usually helps quite a bit!
Thank you for offering an alternative to tofu. I’m allergic to soy and find it difficult to fine soy free vegan recipes. Can’t wait to try this with extra cashews and some cauliflower to balance consistency.
Very welcome! I hope you enjoy it!
These vegan shells taste amazing! My family specifically asked me to make these again for Thanksgiving. The recipe is pretty quick with little clean up as well. Even the carnivores enjoyed these shells!
That's awesome! I'm glad they're a hit. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Has anyone made these, fully assembled, the day prior to baking? I’m going ot try these on Christmas Day and would really need to do all of the work and assembly the day prior. Would that work?
Hi Denise! I think that would work just fine! I've done it before with similar recipes and had no problem. I'd just make sure to seal them up tight so they don't dry out in the refrigerator. Enjoy!
Hi! I cooked the cauliflower sauce a day ahead and it worked beautifully. I am freezing cooked portions for reheating and hoping that that will work too. I love the recipe but it has taken me two attempts as some stages such as prepping the cashews take time so I would definitely try a practice run first. Thanks for the recipe!
These are so freaking delicious and divine! Haven't had stuffed shells since even before going vegan 5 years ago. Made them on Monday and just finished the rest! Next time I should double the recipe. Never wanted to cook before going vegan, either. Thanks Alissa!
I'd dial back on the onion by 1/2, or pre cook the onion
I’ve made this dish so many times, it’s one of our favorites! I make a double batch of the ricotta filling then freeze it for when I make lasagna. I cheat and use store bought sauce, but it still tastes delicious 😋 thanks Alissa
Made the stuffed shells for dinner and my non-vegan loved them! I used my own sauce but the ricotta recipe is a definite keeper. I will use it the next time I make lasagna.Thanks!
I used the double tofu version and it was so delicious!! Easy to make too. I used jarred sauce, melted some vegan mozzarella on top and topped it with some red pepper flakes and nutritional yeast. Definitely saving this recipe!
I’ve made this as the recipes states and it’s fantastic! My store is out of stuffable shells and I’m wondering if anyone is made this as baked ziti? Suggestions? Thanks :)
I'm glad you like it! I haven't made it as baked ziti myself, but I think it would work well! You just might need to play around a bit with the ratio of sauce to pasta to filling. Enjoy!!