Tofu Ricotta Stuffed Shells

I’ve secretly decided that stuffed shells are the lazy person’s ravioli and I’m not upset by that. I honestly love all forms of carbohydrates with some form of delicious filling; dumplings, ravioli, pierogi, etc. Especially if that filling is as delicious as this tofu & spinach ricotta! This is another recipe that I am thrilled to have Mori-Nu Silken Tofu on hand for-the fact that it’s shelf stable means I can whip this up on a moments notice and have a protein filled meal on the table in less than an hour.

I used a jar of homemade marinara that I canned over the summer-I recommend a sauce with a touch of sweetness to contrast with the salty ricotta. We’re going to be adding a bunch of ingredients to the tofu to give it an authentic ricotta flavor. I’m using lactic acid, which I highly recommend over lemon juice, since its a little more authentic “dairy” flavor. If it’s not something in your pantry for plant based vegan cheeses, you can make the substitute for lemon juice.

Each shell is stuffed with this tofu ricotta mixture, then drizzled with more sauce, and topped with vegan cheese. While I love making my own cheeses, I used a store-bought cheese for this. I recommend Follow Your Heart or Violife products if you have access to them. My favorite tip is to drizzle the cheese you are using with a bit of oil and press into the sauce to enable it to melt better.

After baking, I served with a side salad. This dish can totally stand as a meal on its own, but a salad and garlic bread really pulls it together. It’s even better as leftovers! Click Read More if you’d like the recipe!

Ingredients:

•  1 jar marinara sauce, or 24 ounces homemade
•  16 ounces conchiglioni, cooked in salted water
•  1 batch of vegan cheese, or favorite store-bought vegan cheese
•  1 batch of tofu ricotta, recipe below
• 2 tbsp olive oil

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Oil a 9×13″ pan with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Pour a layer of marinara sauce in the bottom of the pan and spread to corners.
2. While waiting for oven to preheat, boil conchiglioni according to package instructions. Make sure to stir while they are cooking so they don’t stick together. Drain and rinse with cool water.
3. Prepare tofu ricotta (see below) and stuff each shell with about 1.5 tablespoons of filling when they are cool enough to handle.
4. Line shells up on top of the marinara, and pour the rest of the jar on top of them. Shred cheese finely on top. Drizzle with remaining olive oil.
5. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until sauce is bubbling and edges of noodles begin to brown. Serve with a side salad or garlic bread.

Tofu Ricotta

1. Combine ingredients for ricotta in a large bowl after draining tofu and patting dry.

2. Mash ingredients until very smooth. Add more salt if desired, taste will be a bit starchy at this point, but the starch will help the mixture bind together while baking.

Tags: italian, morinu, Morinupartner, Morinutofu, pasta, plantbased, Shelfstable, vegan, vegetarian