These butternut squash stuffed shells are filled with a creamy blend of cashew ricotta, roasted butternut squash, and crunchy walnuts, all baked to perfection and served up with a creamy butternut squash sauce.
Preheat oven to 400°F. Place butternut squash and onion into a large roasting pan or oven safe skillet and add olive oil. Toss to coat. Place into the oven and bake until squash is tender and onions are lightly browned, about 45 minutes, flipping once or twice.
While the squash bakes, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the pasta shells and cook according to package directions. Drain the shells into a colander, return them to the pot, and toss with a few dashes of olive oil to prevent them sticking together.
To make the filling, place roughly ⅔ of the soaked cashews (see note) into the bowl of a food processor fitted with an S-blade. Add garlic, ½ cup of milk, and lemon juice. Blend until the mixture is mostly smooth (it doesn’t have to be perfect). Add half of the roasted squash and onions, and all of the walnuts and sage leaves. Pulse a few times just to mix the ingredients, keeping the mixture a bit chunky and being careful not to over-blend them. Season the mixture with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer the mixture to a bowl.
To make the sauce, place remaining squash and onions into the food processor bowl. Add remaining cashews, ¾ cup of the almond or soy milk, and nutmeg. Blend until smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Thin the mixture with additional milk as needed (you may not use it all). It should be saucy and a bit thicker than soup. Season with salt to taste.
Spoon about ⅔ of the butternut squash sauce into the bottom of a 9 x 13 inch baking dish. Stuff each shell with about 2 tablespoons of the filling, then arrange in the baking dish. When all shells are filled, cover the dish loosely with foil. Bake until heated throughout, about 20 minutes.
Warm the remaining sauce up on the stovetop or in the microwave, adding a few additional splashes of milk if it gets too thick. When the sauce is hot, spoon it over the baked shells. Sprinkle with some additional fresh sage and serve.
Notes
Soaking the cashews: Soak the raw cashews in water for 4-8 hours before using them in this recipe. This softens them so that they blend into a creamy sauce. If you forget, you can "cheat" by soaking them in boiling hot water for at least 30 minutes.
Craving more veg-friendly recipes? Shop our collection of vegetarian and vegan cookbooks, including our new Vegan Thanksgiving and Vegan Christmas cookbooks!