Vegan Ricotta Stuffed Pasta with Creamy Squash Sauce

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.

2. Soak 1/2 cup cashews in hot water for at least 10 minutes.

3. Cook the cubed butternut squash by steaming for 10 minutes or boiling until fork tender.

4. Sauté onions and garlic in 1 tablespoon of oil for 4 minutes in a pan.

5. In a blender, add the cashews after discarding the water, then add 1 1/2 cups filtered water and blend on high until smooth.

6. Add the cooked onions, garlic, and butternut squash to the blender and blend until smooth.

7. Add the remaining sauce ingredients and blend until well combined.

8. Spread half of the sauce in a baking dish.

9. Remove the tofu from its package and wrap it in 2 paper towels.

10. Squeeze the tofu for 10 seconds.

11. Break apart the tofu into a food processor.

12. Add 1 teaspoon salt, 2 tablespoons olive oil, juice of 1 lemon, 4 tablespoons nutritional yeast, and 1/2 tablespoon garlic powder to the food processor.

13. Pulse 6-10 times until the mixture resembles ricotta cheese.

14. Taste and adjust salt and seasonings as needed.

15. Cook the frozen spinach in a pan with a pinch of salt and pepper for 2-3 minutes, or microwave it for about 2 minutes.

16. Remove the spinach from the pan and add it to the ricotta mixture.

17. Pulse the mixture 3-4 times to incorporate the spinach.

18. Cook the pasta shells according to package instructions.

19. Drain the pasta shells and immediately drizzle with olive oil to prevent sticking.

20. Spoon the ricotta mixture into each pasta shell.

21. Place the stuffed shells in the baking dish with the sauce and repeat for the remaining shells.

22. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes.

Notes

1. Spinach is optional.

2. Butternut squash can be used fresh or frozen.