I’ve had some run-ins with vegan ‘cheese’ before. The kind that send you screaming for big bites of cheddar straight from the block. People use the term ‘cheese’ rather liberally when it comes to substitution like nutritional yeast and cashews. All of it (until now) has left me with my eyebrows raised and a real hunk of cheese grasped firmly in my hand.
That being said… we need to talk about ricotta and cauliflower and how I’ve (momentarily) relaxed that deathgrip of by block of cheese. Ok?
These stuffed shells (the very first shells I’ve ever stuffed) are filled with the best vegan version of ricotta I’ve come across. Steamed cauliflower is pulsed to a puree with pine nuts, nutmeg, pepper, fresh parsley, and (of all surprising but appropriate things) fresh orange juice. The texture is spot on. The consistency is thumbs up. The flavor is well… totally mild and delicious. Exactly what you’d expect from ricotta and what you’d hope from its vegan counterpart.
This recipe comes from the new book Lo So Good by Jessica of Sodium Girl. She lives a low sodium diet and has written a beautiful cookbook with flavorful, unique recipes that feature flavor over sodium. I love that this cauliflower recipe used a cheese substitute. I really didn’t miss the dairy in the shells. These are delicious!
The cauliflower + pine nut mixture is pulsed and run to smooth in a food processor. In a bowl we’ll mix together spicy Italian sausage (plain ground pork for low sodium option), cauliflower ricotta, fresh basil, and ground allspice. Simple and really satisfying filling.
The bottom of the casserole dish is covered in butternut squash soup.
If you don’t have the time or energy to make fresh soup, packaged butternut squash soup would also work very well, as would a jarred marinara sauce. Choose your adventure!
Shells are filled with a heaping 1 1/2 tablespoons of filling.
And nestled cozy inside the soup.
The shells are ladled with soup, covered with foil, and the mixture is baked to bubbling.
After baking and broiling the soup is thickened, the noodles are browned, and the filling is warmed through.
It’s all very good news! It’s dinner.
This recipe called for no sodium. I have a salt-tooth (just like a sweet tooth but different) and added a few pinches of salt here and there. If you’re salt sensitive, Lo So Good is a fantastic book and if you’re not, enjoy the recipes and add a pinch of salt where you’d like!
Print
Cauliflower Stuffed Shells with Butternut Squash Sauce
Ingredients
For the Butternut Squash Soup
- 1 red bell pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup chopped yellow onion
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 4 cups cubed butternut squash
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
- (salt if using)
- 4 cups water or vegetable broth
For the Filling
- 2 1/2 cups roughly chopped cauliflower, steamed or boiled and cooled slightly
- 3/4 cup unsalted pine nuts
- pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
- (salt to taste if you’re a salt eater)
- 1/4 cup fresh orange juice
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley, coarsely chopped
To Assemble
- 1 12-ounce box jumbo pasta shells
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 4 ounces ground pork, spicy Italian sausage, or grated zucchini
- 2 1/2 cups cauliflower filling (recipe above)
- handful fresh basil leaves, coarsely chopped
- 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
- (salt to taste if you’re a salt eater)
- 4 cups butternut squash soup (recipe above)
Instructions
- To make the soup, start by charring the red pepper over the flame of a gas stove top. Char until blackened on all sides. Once blackened, place warm pepper in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Allow to steam for 15 minutes before peeling the pepper with the back of a spoon and slicing the flesh away from the seeded core.
- Place olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until transluscent and beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes more. Add the butternut squash and red pepper pieces and toss to combine. Stir in the spices, pepper and salt if using. Add the broth and bring the mixture to a simmer, simmering until the butternut squash is completely soft, about 20 minutes.
- Use an immersion blender to blend to soup smooth and simmer for another 15 minutes to reduce.
- To make the cauliflower filling, boil or steam cauliflower until fork tender, about 6 minutes. Allow to cool slightly, for about 10 minutes.
- Place the cauliflower in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a blade attachment. Add pine nuts, nutmeg, garlic powder, pepper, salt (if using), and orange juice. Pulse until well combined and beginning to smooth. Add the parsley and a bit of water if necessary and run the food processor until the mixture is the texture of ricotta, about 2 minutes.
- To assemble the shells place a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- Boil pasta shells in salted water to al dente. Drain and set aside.
- In a medium saucepan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Cook pork or sausage (leave zucchini raw) breaking up with the back of a spoon, until cooked through.
- In a medium bowl, stir together cauliflower ricotta, cooked meat (or raw zucchini), half of the fresh basil, allspice, and a good pinch of salt if using. Stir to combine.
- Place 11/2 cups of soup to the bottom of a casserole dish. Spoon 1 1/2 heaping tablespoons of filling into each shell and place shells face up in the soup.
- When dish is full, pour remaining 1 1/2 cups more soup over the shells. Cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes. Remove the foil, add the remaining 1 cup of soup and bake for 15 minutes more. Turn the oven to broil and broil until the top is browned, about 5 minutes.
- Allow to cool before 10 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with remaining fresh basil and enjoy warm.
Notes
- To make this recipe easier, use a packaged butternut squash soup or even a marinara sauce to coat the shells in instead of the homemade soup!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6
38 Responses
Joy, this recipe is *so good*! I kept my Sunday afternoon wide open for preparing it, and although it was just a hair more time-consuming than I’d have preferred–though partially attributable to my being under the weather and really slow moving–I am so glad I made it! My non-cheese-loving fiance is obsessed, and I’m thankful for the leftovers. (Glad to have made the squash soup as well, rather than store bought. The roasted red pepper really enhanced the flavor!) You’re the best!
I love this! Seems like a nice alternative to the fully stuffed shells with cheese, egg, and spinach.
This was horrible! I just spent 2 hours making this from scratch and almost gagged! I couldn’t even finish one pasta shell. My husband was gracious and ate two. So so disappointed to throw away all that hard work.
I thought this was going to be a vegan recipe, since I was on a search for one……just a question….why would you spend so much time describing the vegan ricotta, when you’re mixing it with meat???? Just call it a non-dairy cheese then. The whole vegan description was nullified. Very disappointed that I wasted my time reading through the recipe, until I hit the pork.
Because I’m not vegan.
just one question,pls: how many grams or ml that you use in one cup? xD
this sounds good to combine with some parmesan on top …. yummm
thanks for sharing, friend.
Tried this last night, loved it! We are vegan so no meat but added fresh, cooked spinach to the “cheese” and a marinara sauce. Yum, and thanks so much for the recipe!
Loved this recipe! Thanks so much.
No pine nuts so I quick soaked cashews in hot water worked great.
Also the butternut squash I used was cubed up and frozen – also worked out just fine.
Will be making it again.
Any thoughts on subbing out the orange juice? My son is allergic to citrus, but I’d love to make this…
You can just leave it out, no problem
I long ago gave up on finding genuine substitutes for cheese. Instead. I just appreciate the deliciousness of the substitutes without trying to compare them…because let’s be honest – there is NO substitute for good cheese. =)
That said, this sounds really yummy. I will be interested to see how the recipe works in manicotti (which I prefer to shells, because I can stuff them without boiling them first)…because it’s almost fall, and butternut squash anything sounds pretty tasty right about now.
So funny that you combined the vegan ricotta with meat :) Not that my vegetarianism is influencing this comment, but if I’m going to go to the trouble to make vegan cheese-which is no small task- then the whole darn dish is going to be vegan. I will be making the recipe for sure, sans the meat. xo
I don’t have a problem with substitutions but you want it to taste similar or at least good in comparison to the real thing. With that in mind I’m glad you found a really great option for ricotta. Cheese is a hard thing to go without and this makes it easier.
Harry Bowden
This was great! I used an apple/sage vegan sausage ground up and it was so yummy and fall-like. Makes me want sweater weather wicked bad.
I love how popular cauliflower has become. It’s almost always affordable in my area, and so versatile. This looks like a completely impressive dish I would serve company any day.
Did you notice you put butternut squash soup instead of sauce?? Oops!
I have switched to the app called “Paprika” to save my recipes and it works for most sites, however it does not work for yours. I think there is something you can do on your end so that it will work. Worth a try?
I do love your recipes but they are difficult to save without this app.
This sounds amazing. Definitely on my fall to-make list!
Well that’s one dinner sorted this weekend!!
Rxx
http://www.peppermintdolly.com
I love this idea, I just had an amazing filo pie at my friend’s house for dinner the other night which was vegan (most of her family are) and her brother made this awesome creamy filling using soya single cream! Totally didn’t miss the real thing at all! I’m pretty sensitive to dairy myself so try and restrict my cheese and milk intake a lot so this looks like a great substitute. Thanks Joy!
https://victoriaspongepeasepudding.com/
This looks so good. Totally making this in the fall. Thanks for giving vegetarian and meat options!
Genius. My husband is sensitive to dairy and allergic to nuts, especially cashews, so fake dairy subs tend to be a resounding no for us. I’d just rather go without. This, however, looks amazing, and will be made asap. I’ll probably sub in toasted sunflower seeds for pine nuts.
I’m also thinking I should double the soup so I can cook it once and have two different dinners because… lazy.
Aha! Sunflower seeds! I’d love to make this dish, but my son has a nut allergy so I was wondering how I could modify it. Thanks for the tip!
I’ve recently just transition to veganism! I’m so excited to see this on your blog! Your tastes are so diverse!!! Thank you so much for this!
https://www.searedandshameless.com
I’m intrigued. Thank you for sharing. I’m going to give this a shot.
Yum! That looks so good! Can’t wait to try!
Laura
https://laurelandfern.com/
Absolutely have to try this! What a beautiful dinner to welcome Fall!
I can’t stop staring at these! They look absolutely amazing!! I definitely want to try.
x Sarah
https://www.bohochiccafe.com
My dad and I are lactose intolerant, and my brother is sometimes sensitive to dairy in cheese, so this sounds like a great way to enjoy a meal without a) remembering to pop a lactase pill beforehand or b) suffering the aftereffects of eating cheese!
Any suggestions on a substitute for pine nuts? We have a nut allergy and will need to omit them.
Hi! I’ve used roasted pumpkin seeds as a replacement for pine nuts in my pesto for years and get raves about it! Plus they are cheaper, win win! :)
I have tried a cauliflower based vegan ricotta and loved it – would probably try and higher protein substitute for the plant based version than zucchini but love the sound of it
This looks great! Thank you so much for posting a recipe that can be 100% plant based! Can’t wait to make it!
Thanks! Looks delicious. Do you know where I can find the nutritional details?
Wow, such an unusual recipe but it has all things I love (except haven’t tried the cheese)!
Wow this sounds so interesting!! Orange juice? Oh my goodness will definitely try this (with the pinch of salt).
Liefs,
Yara
Glad you explained the sodium angle, because I was momentarily perplexed by the use of vegan cheese with non-vegan pork.
I like the idea of sneaking in a high-nutrition vegetable like cauliflower. If the family figures out that it isn’t cheese, I might try again with a mix of real and vegan ricotta.
Oh this dish sounds fantastic! What an interesting idea for vegan ‘ricotta’ – I can’t wait to make it for some of my non-dairy eating friends sometime :) xxx