Butternut Squash Stuffed Shells

Yield: 6-8
Author: Tara Felser, MS, RDN
Butternut Squash Stuffed Shells

Butternut Squash Stuffed Shells

This vegan butternut squash stuffed shell main is great for a holiday gathering or weekend dinner. The tofu adds protein to the dish, the squash adds some sweetness, and both are complemented nicely by the curry powder for a touch of warmth.
Prep time: 30 MinCook time: 45 MinTotal time: 1 H & 15 M
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Ingredients

  • 1 box (~12 oz) jumbo pasta shells
Squash Filling
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 medium butternut squash, diced medium
  • 1 small onion, diced small
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2"-inch piece of fresh ginger, grated
  • 1/4 tsp nutmeg
  • 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
  • 1 tsp curry powder
  • 1 (14 oz) block extra firm tofu, drained and blended in a blender or food processor until smooth or mashed with a fork as much as possible
  • 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 2 cups tightly packed spinach, roughly chopped or torn into pieces
  • salt and pepper to taste
Creamy Cashew Pasta Sauce
  • 1 cup cashews (see note)
  • 2 cups vegetable broth
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
  • 1/2 tsp rosemary
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Prepare jumbo pasta shells according to package directions. Drain and set aside. If not ready to fill right away, rinse the noodles in warm water to prevent them from sticking together and tearing/breaking.
  2. While the pasta is boiling, prepare the squash filling.
  3. Heat the olive oil in a pan on the stove over medium-high heat. Saute diced squash and onions until they begin to soften, stirring occasionally to prevent them from burning. Deglaze the pan with a small splash of water if necessary to lift up some of the browning bits on the bottom of the pan.
  4. Add garlic, ginger, nutmeg, crushed red pepper flakes, and curry powder and saute for another 1-2 minutes until very fragrant.
  5. If you’d like, gently mash the squash mixture with the back of the spoon or utensil you are using to stir the mixture, or lightly mash with a potato masher, leaving a little bit of texture to the mix.
  6. Add in the blended tofu, balsamic vinegar, and spinach. Stir to combine and cook for another 2-3 minutes until the spinach has wilted down within the mixture. Set aside for a moment while you make the sauce.
  7. To make the sauce, in the jar of your blender, combine the cashews, vegetable broth, garlic, and nutritional yeast. Blend on high until smooth. Add the rosemary, salt, and pepper and pulse just to combine.
  8. Preheat the oven to 350F.
  9. Assemble the stuffed shells by spooning 1-2 tbsp of the butternut squash filling into each pasta shell and gently squeezing them to close/seal. Repeat with all the shells/filling, laying them tightly in a 9x13 inch dish.
  10. Pour the cashew sauce over the shells, trying to coat them evenly.
  11. Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes until bubbly.
  12. Remove from the oven, serve, and enjoy.

Notes

While cashews are a great option here, sunflower seeds can work equally well and are generally a bit more cost effective. Feel free to substitute one for the other.

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This is one of my absolute favorite dishes and is a perfect vegan main or side dish for a holiday dinner.

The extra firm tofu in this dish takes the place of a slightly more typical ricotta. Blending the tofu in a food processor or blender until smooth is a great substitute for ricotta. The texture is pretty spot-on. To achieve this, blend the tofu, scraping down the sides of the blender or food processor as necessary to get the tofu as smooth as possible. If you don’t have a blender or food processor, mashing the tofu with a fork to get it as smooth as possible is perfectly fine too. The texture may be a bit chunkier, but it works well in this dish just the same.

The cashew cream sauce in this dish is lovely. I highly recommend keeping it in your pasta sauce repertoire for a creamy sauce for other noodle dishes, too. I have found both raw or roasted cashews to work here. If you use raw cashews, soak them in boiling hot water for 10 minutes, drain and then rinse them before blending (step 7 below). Soaking helps make them softer and easier to blend (especially if you do not have a high-speed blender), as well as possibly having the benefit of improving digestion and absorption of certain nutrients. I have also used roasted cashews in this recipe, without soaking, and it has turned out equally delicious.

Makes enough shells to fill a 9x13 sized baking dish. Serves 4-6.

Ingredients:

  • 1 box (~12 oz) jumbo pasta shells

  • Squash Filling

    • 1 tbsp olive oil

    • 1 medium butternut squash, diced

    • 1 small onion, diced

    • 2 cloves garlic, minced

    • 1/2"-inch piece of fresh ginger, grated

    • 1/4 tsp nutmeg

    • 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

    • 1 tsp curry powder

    • 1 (14 oz) block extra firm tofu, blended in a blender or food processor until smooth or mashed with a fork as much as possible

    • 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

    • 2 cups tightly packed spinach

    • salt and pepper to taste

  • Sauce

    • 1 cup cashews

    • 2 cups vegetable broth

    • 2 cloves garlic

    • 1/4 cup nutritional yeast

    • 1/2 tsp rosemary

    • salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Prepare jumbo pasta shells according to package directions. Drain and set aside. If not ready to fill right away, rinse the noodles in warm water to prevent them from sticking together and tearing/breaking.

  2. While the pasta is boiling, prepare the squash filling.

  3. Heat the olive oil in a pan on the stove over medium-high heat. Saute diced squash and onions until they begin to soften, stirring occasionally to prevent them from burning. Deglaze the pan with a small splash of water if necessary to lift up some of the browning bits on the bottom of the pan.

  4. Add garlic, ginger, nutmeg, crushed red pepper flakes, and curry powder and saute for another 1-2 minutes until very fragrant.

  5. If you’d like, gently mash the squash mixture with the back of the spoon or utensil you are using to stir the mixture, or lightly mash with a potato masher, leaving a little bit of texture to the mix.

  6. Add in the blended tofu, balsamic vinegar, and spinach. Stir to combine and cook for another 2-3 minutes until the spinach has wilted down within the mixture. Set aside for a moment while you make the sauce.

  7. To make the sauce, in the jar of your blender, combine the cashews, vegetable broth, garlic, and nutritional yeast. Blend on high until smooth. Add the rosemary, salt, and pepper and pulse just to combine.

  8. Preheat the oven to 350F.

  9. Assemble the stuffed shells by spooning 1-2 tbsp of the butternut squash filling into each pasta shell and gently squeezing them to close/seal. Repeat with all the shells/filling, laying them tightly in a 9x13 inch dish.

  10. Pour the cashew sauce over the shells, trying to coat them evenly.

  11. Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes until bubbly.

  12. Remove from the oven, serve, and enjoy.

RecipesTara Felser, MS, RDNComment