Serve these vegan stuffed shells with a homemade spinach 'ricotta' made from tofu and a hearty tomato sauce for a wholesome, comforting dinner. They're easy to make from scratch with simple ingredients, and freezer-friendly too. Great for weeknight meals and special occasions alike!
It's no secret that I love pasta, and at the moment I can't stop making stuffed shells. They're just so fun to make, and even more fun to eat! There's just something so special about chewy jumbo shells with a delicious homemade filling. And I can guarantee that even non-vegans will love this recipe! It misses absolutely no flavor, despite being completely dairy-free.
If you're a pasta lover like myself, I recommend you run to the kitchen and make these ASAP. You won't regret it at all, and will likely want to make them again straight after!
Delicious vegan stuffed shells with 'ricotta'
When describing what's to love about these amazing stuffed shells, I don't even know where to start! The pasta variety used here is conchiglie, which is the best for stuffing as the shells are so large and don't fall apart easily.
These vegan ricotta stuffed shells are pretty much the definition of comfort food and like my butternut squash risotto, look and taste fancy despite being very easy to make. That's considering the fact that the ricotta and tomato sauce are made from scratch!
The star of the show here is the homemade tofu ricotta. You need just 5 simple ingredients to make this dairy-free ricotta from scratch. Then, you mix it with spinach in a pan, and it's ready to be added to the vegan stuffed shells. Despite the simplicity, it's so incredibly flavorful and goes super well with the pasta.
We're also making a homemade tomato sauce. I would 100% recommend making your own from scratch, because it requires very little extra time and effort, and simple ingredients. I'm sure you will love it as much as I did!
How to make vegan stuffed shells from scratch
Prepare the conchiglie
Cook the conchiglie for around 2-3 minutes less than the packaging instructions. Drain and rinse when done.
Meanwhile, lightly grease a rectangular baking dish with olive oil or vegan butter, and preheat the oven to 180 degrees C/350 F.
Make the tomato sauce
Heat some olive oil in a frying pan or saucepan over a medium-high heat. Now add onion, garlic and tomato paste and cook for 5 minutes, until softened and fragrant.
Next, add canned tomatoes, dried oregano and salt, and cook for a further 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently.
Make the tofu ricotta
Add extra firm tofu, nutritional yeast, apple cider vinegar, tahini and plant based milk to a blender or food processor and blend on a low speed for a few seconds. Make sure not to overblend, so that the tofu retains some texture.
Next, transfer the 'ricotta' to a frying pan over a medium heat and add the spinach. Stir for a couple of minutes, until the spinach wilts, and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Assemble and bake
Add a layer of the tomato sauce to the baking dish. Next, add around 1-2 tablespoon to the ricotta to each pasta shell and arrange them in an even layer above the tomato sauce. If you wish, you can add some more tomato sauce on top.
Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes, until crispy and golden.
Tips for success
- Make sure not to overcook the pasta shells. It's really important that they are al dente, because this will make sure that they don't fall apart when you add the filling. They will also continue cooking in the oven.
- Use extra firm tofu for the best crumbly texture.
- Either fresh or frozen spinach works well in the filling for these stuffed shells.
- If you want to, you can use store-bought vegan ricotta, and a store-bought tomato/marinara sauce.
- You can add other vegetables of your choice to the tomato sauce. For instance, I love adding diced carrots and zucchini.
- In order to save time, you can make the tofu ricotta while the onion and garlic for the tomato sauce are cooking.
- You can add either grated vegan cheese, or homemade vegan parmesan on top of the pasta shells either before baking, or when you're ready to serve.
Can you make vegan stuffed shells ahead of time?
Yes, these are really easy to make ahead of time. Simply make the pasta shells as instructed up to the point of baking, arranging them in the baking dish. Then, cover and leave in the fridge for up to 8-10 hours. Then, proceed to bake as normal, but with an extra 5 minutes.
Instructions for storage and freezing
- You can keep these vegan stuffed shells in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Reheat in the microwave in 1-minute intervals, until warmed through. Or you can reheat in a baking dish in the oven for around 10 minutes.
- I would recommend freezing them before baking. Cover and freeze for up to 2 months. When ready to eat, allow to thaw fully in the fridge for around 8 hours, then bake at 180 degrees C/350 F for 30 minutes.
Other delicious vegan pasta recipes
- For an amazing weeknight dinner, try roasted red pepper pasta.
- A creamy vegan pasta salad makes a great side dish.
- My avocado pasta is ready in about 10 minutes!
- For a quick and flavorful dinner, try one pot chickpea pasta.
- Butternut squash mac and cheese is easy to make and flavorful.
If you give these vegan stuffed shells with spinach ricotta a go, be sure to tag me on Instagram (@ohmyveggies) so I can see your remakes, and leave your feedback in the comments below together with a star rating!
📖 Recipe
Equipment
- Conventional oven
Ingredients
The pasta shells
- 10 oz conchiglie, (around 15 large shells)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, (or vegan butter) to grease the baking dish
The tomato sauce
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 can canned tomatoes, (14 oz can)
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon salt
The tofu ricotta
- 10 oz extra firm tofu
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon tahini
- ⅓ cup plant based milk
Instructions
- Cook the conchiglie: Cook the pasta shells for around 2-3 minutes less than the packaging instructions. Drain and rinse when done.
- Preheat the oven: Lightly grease a rectangular baking dish with olive oil or vegan butter, and preheat the oven to 180 degrees C/350 F.
- Make the tomato sauce: Heat some olive oil in a frying pan or saucepan over a medium-high heat. Now add onion, garlic and tomato paste and cook for 5 minutes, until softened and fragrant. Next, add canned tomatoes, dried oregano and salt, and cook for a further 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Make the tofu ricotta: Add extra firm tofu, nutritional yeast, apple cider vinegar, tahini and plant based milk to a blender or food processor and blend on a low speed for a few seconds.
- Add spinach: Transfer the 'ricotta' to a frying pan over a medium heat together with the spinach. Stir for a couple of minutes, until the spinach wilts, and season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Assemble the pasta shells: Add a layer of the tomato sauce to the baking dish. Next, add around 1-2 tablespoon to the ricotta to each pasta shell and arrange them in an even layer above the tomato sauce. If you wish, you can add some more tomato sauce on top.
- Bake the shells: Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes, until crispy and golden.
Video
Notes
- Make sure not to overcook the pasta shells. It's really important that they are al dente, because this will make sure that they don't fall apart when you add the filling.
- Use extra firm tofu for the best crumbly texture.
- Either fresh or frozen spinach works well.
- If you want to, you can use store-bought vegan ricotta, and a store-bought tomato/marinara sauce.
- You can add other vegetables of your choice to the tomato sauce.
- In order to save time, you can make the tofu ricotta while the onion and garlic for the tomato sauce are cooking.
- You can add either grated vegan cheese, or homemade vegan parmesan on top of the pasta shells either before baking, or when you're ready to serve.
- You can keep these vegan stuffed shells in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Reheat in the microwave in 1-minute intervals, until warmed through. Or you can reheat in a baking dish in the oven for around 10 minutes.
- You can freeze the pasta shells before baking. Cover and freeze for up to 2 months. When ready to eat, allow to thaw fully in the fridge for around 8 hours, then bake at 180 degrees C/350 F for 30 minutes.
Nutrition (estimated per serving)
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