I made this recipe several months ago and completely forgot about sharing it with you. Not because it was unmemorable – quite the opposite – but recipes and photos occasionally get lost in the bunch if I’m not careful. The photos on my computer are a bit out of control (or so says my husband). I’m trying to work up the courage to tell Eric that I’ve filled up yet another hard drive, but that is another story.
This stuffed shell pasta is inspired by Terry Walters, author of Clean Food and Clean Start cookbooks. There’s a recipe for basic stuffed shells in her Clean Food cookbook, so I played around with it by adding more veggies and fresh herbs. The outcome is a tasty tofu “ricotta-like” cheese that can be added to stuffed shells, spread on lasagna, or even turned into eggplant rollatini if you are so inclined. Of course, it doesn’t taste exactly like ricotta cheese (not that I even remember what it tastes like!), but it sure is a tasty dairy-free alternative.
Speaking of eggplant rollatini, here’s a photo when I made it last summer – served on a bed of julienned carrot and zucchini “pasta” with a sprinkle of almond parmesan cheese. A lovely summer meal. Edit: I’ve added the directions for prepping the eggplant in the comments section.
I haven’t been able to find any gluten-free dairy-free jumbo shells yet, but I’m sure they exist. If you know of any brands, please give them a shout-out in the comments! For those of you looking for a soy alternative, maybe give nut-cheese a try instead. I have a cheese recipe in my lasagna recipe that could probably be used for stuffed shells also.
As for the tofu, you can crumble it by hand or you can use a food processor. I’ve made it both ways and I can’t decide which I prefer. Crumbling by hand is a bit messy, but it saves cleaning the processor while using the processor is a bit quicker and results in a creamier texture. It’s really up to you how you make it.
Jumbo Stuffed Shells
Yield
6 servings
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Adapted from: Clean Food by Terry Walters
Ingredients
For the pasta
- 3.5 cups pasta sauce
- 340 grams jumbo pasta shells (I used 30 shells or 2/3 of the box – but make extra as some break)
For the Tofu Ricotta
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 medium sweet onion, diced
- 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 celery stalks, diced
- 1/2 cup packed fresh basil leaves, minced
- 1/2 cup packed fresh parsley, minced
- 1 (14oz) package extra-firm or firm tofu, pressed
- 3 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 3/4-1 tsp fine grain sea salt, or to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes (optional)
Directions
- Rinse block of tofu and wrap with paper towels followed by 2-3 tea towels. Place it on a cutting board or plate and add several heavy cookbooks on top. Press tofu for about 20-25 minutes to drain out the water. Alternatively, you can use a tofu press.
- Grease a very large casserole dish. I used about 30 shells, but you’ll need to cook more than that as some shells will break during the cooking process. Cook shells in a pot of boiling water until al dente, about 8-11 minutes. Be careful not to overcook. Drain shells and set aside to cool.
- Preheat oven to 400°F. For the tofu ricotta: In a large skillet, sauté the garlic and onion in the oil for about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add in the chopped celery, basil, and parsley and sauté for another 5 minutes or so. Feel free to throw in some spinach for extra greens.
- For the tofu, you can either crumble it into the skillet with your hands or you can give it a whirl in the food processor and then stir it into the skillet. If you use the processor, the texture will be very creamy like ricotta cheese and if you crumble it with your hands it will be more chunky/crumbly. It’s up to you how you want to make it. I usually opt to crumble it by hand so I don’t dirty the processor. Stir in the nutritional yeast, salt, pepper, lemon, and cayenne all to taste. Over medium heat, cook for about 8-10 minutes or until most of the water cooks off.
- Spoon about 1 cup of marinara sauce into the casserole dish and spread around. Add about 2 tbsp of tofu ricotta into each stuffed shell and place shells on top of marinara sauce. Cover shells with the remaining 2-2.5 cups marinara sauce and any leftover tofu ricotta. You can add vegan cheese on top, but I don’t bother. Cover dish with tin foil and poke several air holes. Bake at 400°F for about 20 minutes or until heated throughout. Serve with a basic green salad and garlic bread, if desired.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)Vida Vegan Con Giveaway Winner!
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Hi Angela!
I don’t know if this is what you’re looking for, but I find that Tinkyada’s gluten free, brown rice shells are perfect for stuffed shells. I don’t know if they’re as large as regular oversized shells (I’ve only made them once, with the gluten free shells) and they turned out great! The great thing about Tinkyada’s pastas are that they are solely made of brown rice, rice bran and water. I hope these work out for you! :)
Whole Foods Grocer sells the gluten-free dairy-free jumbo shells. Not all together sure of the brand name.
Hi! These shells look delicious! Just curious if there was a recipe for the marinara sauce? It looks super yummy!
Hi Gina, I tend to use either White Linen Collection (from Costco) or President’s Choice organic vegetable pasta sauce. I don’t think I have an official recipe, but will have to create one this summer!
Love the idea of tofu ricotta! Your creamy navy bean filling for the Layered Eggplant and Zucchini Casserole was such a hit at a dinner party a few months ago so I can’t wait to test this out!
Thank you for making traditional dishes delicious for vegans and omnivores alike!
These look beautiful Ange!! I love the tofu ricotta idea and am totally going to give it a try. Your stuffing is so neat and tidy! I love the Clean Food cookbook and you’ve inspired me to have a flick through the spring recipes tonight!
I love how you replaced the ricotta – you’d never know by looking! They look delicious :).
These stuffed shells are gorgeous :D I’m not even sure where to get big shells like that in Australia, I don’t think I’ve ever seen them (gluten-free or not). I’d love to make this with a cashew cheese, I’m salivating just looking at the photos!
Hello Angela. These look wonderful! I am a new addition to your blog and am loving it! I have been slowly making healthy changes to my diet and find your site so helpful and motivating to stay on track. You have really made sure that vegan food tastes good and isn’t just seeds and berries ;)
I have a question about nutritional yeast. In my latest research I have come across information that recommends staying away from it as it is/contains MSG. Have you heard anything about this?
Hi Christine, Thanks for your kind words about the blog!
I’m sorry I haven’t heard of that before, but I will certainly look into it. As for this recipe, you can easily leave out the nutritional yeast and I’m sure it will still taste fine. Enjoy!
These sound and look amazing!
Tinkyada has some awesome shells that are GF and Vegan! I love all of their pasta shapes – they can actually be cook al dente and taste really good.
Those stuffed shells are looking so good!
This looks and sounds delicious!! I love tofu ricotta :) — I normally put a little bit of white miso and tahini in mine. It’s also really great in lasagne!
I am so full from tonight’s dinner….but you just made me so hungry again. I’m always searching for vegan pasta recipes, this one looks like a keeper.
This looks fantastic! I’m a big fan of Terry Walters’ books. Her orange tofu recipe is one of my favourites!
That meal looks so professional with the presentation. Very nice!
Thank you! I tried very hard hahaha
Hi There,
If I know I’m not going to make recipe, but I know I want to save it for the future, I usually print a copy. I can’t seem to find the usual print buttons for this post…. hum?
Thanks for all your recipes — love following your work!
oops I totally forgot to include the link! My apologies I will add it now :)
If in the future there is no print recipe not to worry. Just press print screen and save it
Your photography skills are amazing. It’s a little complicated for me, this recipe, but somehow you manage to create what looks like miracle food!
Aw thank you! That means a lot to me.
My college actually had pretty gourmet food, at least they did my freshman year before the recession hit. Anyway, stuffed shells were one of my favorite foods so I’m excited to make these!
I’m confused : ( I thought you said you haven’t been able to find gluten-free and dairy-free shells? Are these simply dairy-free?
Hi Leah, yes they are dairy-free and not gluten free…the recipe was made a few months back.
Pasta is such a great comfort food to me, this looks like a great hearty meal. Photos are gorgeous!