These pumpkin ricotta stuffed shells are the ULTIMATE comfort food for fall: cheesy, creamy, chewy, and garlicky all at once. A must-make during the colder months and a guaranteed way to blow everyone away at your holiday table!
Why you’ll love these Vegan Pumpkin Ricotta Stuffed Shells
Fall comfort food: Giant pasta shells get stuffed in a cheesy pumpkin filling, topped with a creamy white sauce, and then baked in the oven. It’s the epitome of comfort food for cold weather and pumpkin season!
Texture, texture, texture! The contrast of the chewy baked shells with the creamy filling and sauce is so good you won’t be able to put your fork down! This is one of my favorite secret tofu recipes – most people would never suspect it’s an ingredient!
Crowd pleasing holiday dish. I have made this for two Thanksgiving dinners, one Christmas dinner, and one fall dinner party, and this dish is always a hit. It usually gets the “I can’t believe this is vegan” line, and according to many of you, the results are the exact same in your homes :)
Surprisingly easy. Despite this being a crowd pleasing and impressive dish fancy enough for the holidays, it’s actually quite easy to assemble and make. If you watch the video down below or on Youtube, you’ll be able to see that it’s really easy and doesn’t require any special cooking skills.
Watch! How to make Vegan Pumpkin Ricotta Stuffed Shells.
Pumpkin Ricotta Stuffed Shells | brilliant vegan recipe 🍂
Ingredients + Methods for this Recipe
Jumbo Pasta Shells
You can find jumbo pasta shells at many grocery stores (though not all). I’ve found them at Whole Foods, Vons, and Ralphs, as well as stores like Target and Walmart. The large shell size, in combination with the decadent filling and sauce, mean that just a few shells will satisfy your cravings!
Cook the shells in a large pot of salted boiling water until just al dente. When the shells are done cooking, drain them and toss them with a bit of olive oil to prevent sticking and drying out.
Pumpkin Ricotta Filling
This filling is so tasty yet so easy to make and comes together in less than 10 minutes. It starts with my homemade vegan tofu ricotta cheese. I use a variation of this cheeze in a number of my recipes, from lasagna to savory tarts.
The tofu ricotta requires extra firm tofu, nutritional yeast, and a few dried herbs and seasonings to achieve the traditional texture of traditional ricotta. The nice thing about it is you don’t have to press the tofu – you just need to pat dry excess water before crumbling it up. The other nice thing is that the food processor does all the work for you. All you do is add the ingredients to a food processor and pulse repeatedly until slightly smooth but still a little chunky.
Traditional ricotta is fairly bland in taste, but my vegan version is so flavorful that you’ll want to eat it on its own! (many readers do just this).
Then, the tofu ricotta gets folded into a pumpkin filling, which features canned pumpkin purée, freshly grated nutmeg, salt, pepper, and vegan parmesan cheese for that extra cheesy goodness. The pumpkin and nutmeg bring a slightly sweet and slightly earthy flair that is irresistible! The slightly sweet yet spicy aroma of freshly grated nutmeg will truly delight your taste buds, so please don’t skip this step!
Looking for tips on how to make tofu taste AMAZING? Check out my comprehensive guide to cooking tofu.
Garlic Béchamel Sauce
The final component of this delicious dish is the creamy garlic white sauce. I’ve made my fair share of plant-based white sauces, and this recipe is by far my favorite. It’s so creamy and flavorful that you can eat it by the spoon. You know a dish is going to be amazing when you can eat two of the components by the spoon.
Start off by cooking some onions in extra virgin olive oil until nicely softened and lightly browned, then add the garlic until very fragrant. The cooked onions and garlic are what take this sauce from an ordinary Béchamel sauce to an extremely flavorful, garlicky Béchamel sauce. After they are done cooking, you’ll add all-purpose flour and stir to incorporate, similar to making a roux.
And then to make this white sauce super creamy without using dairy-based milk or cream, I use canned “lite” coconut milk. It’s creamy enough to make this sauce luxurious and decadent, but light enough that the sauce won’t turn out too heavy or thick. The flour will help thicken the sauce very quickly, and it should take just 2 minutes.
Transfer the sauce to a blender, add salt and pepper, and blend until smooth and creamy! Keep in mind that if you taste this sauce before blending, it will taste quite coconutty. But, once you add the salt and pepper and blend it up in a blender until creamy, I promise it loses that coconut taste!
To assemble the dish, pour about 1/2 cup of the Béchamel sauce onto the bottom of a 13×9-inch (33×23 cm) rectangular pan (a 3 liter pan).
Stuff 1 to 2 tablespoons of the pumpkin ricotta filling into each jumbo shell. Arrange the stuffed shells on top of the sauce. Then drizzle the remaining sauce on top of the shells. Finally, scatter some chopped sage leaves on top for that earthy, woodsy perfect-for-fall flavor!
Bake in the oven at 350°F (or 175°C) for 25 minutes until the shells are lightly golden!
Tips for making this recipe
Cook the pasta in well-salted boiling water until just al dente.
I always recommend cooking pasta in well-salted water because that’s what will bring some flavor to the pasta. Obviously, the filling and sauce will have lots of flavor, but you want every little bite to be well seasoned, even the parts of the pasta that don’t have filling.
Also, don’t cook the shells past the al dente stage – they should still have a bit of bite to them. Since the stuffed shells will get baked in the oven for a bit, you definitely don’t want them to be too soft, or else the end dish could be a bit mushy.
Use freshly grated nutmeg.
I know I sound like a bougie food snob channeling her inner Ina Garten when I say this, but freshly grated nutmeg really does make a big difference and adds so much more depth and intensity of flavor compared to pre-ground nutmeg. Plus, fresh nutmeg pods have an excellent shelf life when stored properly, about 3-4 years, so it’s an inexpensive purchase compared to ground nutmeg, which will lose its potency much quicker.
Don’t overbake the stuffed shells.
The shells will start to dry out if they’re baked too long, so keep an eye on them and use an oven thermometer if you have one!
Same goes for reheating.
Reheat leftover shells in a low oven, about 300ºF/150ºC for 15 to 20 minutes until warmed through. When reheated at 350ºF/175ºC, the edges of the shells dry out.
Serve as a main or a side dish.
Since this dish is so creamy and indulgent, I often serve it as a side dish for a crowd. But, it’s also so delicious that many people prefer it as a main dish (my dinner party guests certainly do!). However you serve it, I guarantee that your guests will never know it’s vegan and/or will be very pleased.
How to make this recipe ahead of time
You can make pumpkin ricotta filling 1-3 days in advance. You can also make the garlic béchamel sauce a day or two in advance.
Then, on the day of serving, you can (1) cook the shells, (2) stuff the shells with the pumpkin ricotta filling, and (3) bake the dish.
To save even more time on the big day, you can even stuff the cooked pasta shells in advance and store them in the fridge 1 day ahead of time. Then on the day of cooking, pour some béchamel sauce on the bottom of the pan, arrange the shells on top, and bring to room temperature. Then bake as directed in the recipe card.
How to make homemade pumpkin puree
If you can’t find canned pumpkin puree, you can make your own pumpkin puree using fresh pumpkin!
- Preheat the oven to 400°F/205°C.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Cut the pumpkin in half, from stem to end, using a rocking motion as you rotate the pumpkin. You’ll need a very sharp large knife. If it’s still too difficult to cut, pop the whole pumpkin in the microwave for 1 minute. Try again, and if you’re still not able to cut it, microwave for another 30 to 60 seconds.
- When you’ve sliced the pumpkin, pull the halves apart – they should separate at the stem. Use a large spoon to scoop out the seeds and as much of the stringy bits you can.
- Lightly sprinkle the flesh with kosher salt. Place the pumpkin halves, cut side down, on the lined baking sheet.
- Bake pumpkin until the flesh is tender and the skin is pulling away from the flesh, 40-45 minutes (dependent on size).
- Once the pumpkin is cool enough to handle, scoop out the flesh into a food processor and blend until very smooth, about 3 to 4 minutes.
- Store in the fridge in an airtight container for 5 to 7 days, or you can freeze it for several months.
More Fantastic Pumpkin Recipes
- Thai Pumpkin Soup: creamy texture, warm spices, gourmet Thai flavor
- Pumpkin Pancakes: wholesome yet indulgent, a perfect fall breakfast
- Roasted Pumpkin Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette: an Indian-inspired curry packed with protein and fiber.
- Pumpkin Bread: moist, tender, and even fluffy with so much pumpkin spice flavor!
Looking for the the gourmet upgrade from my 2023 YouTube video featuring an herb-infused garlic béchamel sauce, caramelized leeks, and fried sage? Check out the second recipe card below!
If you give this Vegan Pumpkin Ricotta Stuffed Shells recipe a try, be sure to tag me on Instagram with your recreations and please comment with your feedback below!
Vegan Pumpkin Ricotta Stuffed Shells
Ingredients
- 26 to 30 jumbo pasta shells
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Tofu Ricotta (recipe below)
- 1 cup (240-250g) canned pumpkin purée*
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/2 cup (50-60g) vegan parmesan cheese* (optional but recommended)
- Garlic Béchamel Sauce (recipe below)
- 15 fresh sage leaves, sliced or torn up
Tofu Ricotta
- 1 (14-ounce/400g) block of extra-firm tofu
- 1/4 cup (20g) nutritional yeast
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- Kosher salt
- Freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small lemon, zested and 1 tablespoon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Garlic Béchamel Sauce
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 (13.5 ounce/400 mL) can “lite” coconut milk**, can shaken or stirred well
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- Freshly cracked black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the pasta shells. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil and generously salt the water. Add the jumbo pasta shells and cook according to the box instructions until just al dente (do not overcook!), then drain well.
- Transfer the cooked pasta shells to a baking sheet and drizzle with the 1 tablespoon olive oil to prevent sticking and set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (or 175°C). Grab a a 13×9-inch (33×23 cm) rectangular oven-safe baking dish (a 3 liter pan).
- While the pasta is cooking, prepare the Tofu Ricotta. Drain the block of tofu and dab away the excess water with some paper towels. Place the tofu in a food processor. Add the nutritional yeast, garlic powder, onion powder, 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, a generous amount of pepper, extra virgin olive oil, lemon zest, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, and crushed red pepper flakes.Pulse repeatedly until the texture is relatively smooth but still a little chunky, similar to the texture of ricotta cheese.
- Make the pumpkin ricotta filling. In a large bowl, combine the Tofu Ricotta, pumpkin purée, nutmeg, and vegan parmesan cheese (if using). Fold the ingredients together using a silicone spatula. Taste the filling and adjust the seasonings accordingly, adding more salt, pepper, or nutmeg as needed. Spoon 1-2 tablespoons of the filling into each jumbo pasta shell, and set aside.
- Make the Garlic Béchamel Sauce. Heat a large frying pan over medium heat and add the 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add onion and season with a pinch of salt. Cook for 6-7 minutes, or until the onion is softened and lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent burning. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the flour, whisking constantly for a minute until well incorporated. Gradually pour in the lite coconut milk in stages, whisking after each addition to prevent clumps, and then cook for 2 minutes until the sauce has thickened.
- Blend the sauce. Transfer the sauce to a blender and add the 1 teaspoon kosher salt and black pepper to taste. Blend until the sauce is smooth and creamy. Taste the sauce for seasonings, adding more salt or pepper as desired.
- Assemble the dish. Pour 1/2 cup of the Garlic Béchamel Sauce into the baking dish (enough for a thin layer on the bottom of the pan). Arrange the stuffed jumbo shells on top of the sauce. Pour the remaining sauce on top of the shells. Scatter the chopped fresh sage leaves on top of the sauce. Bake the stuffed shells for 22-25 minutes, or until the pasta shells are lightly golden. Serve warm.
Notes
Pumpkin Ricotta Stuffed Shells (Gourmet Version)
Ingredients
Pumpkin Ricotta Filling
- 14 oz (400g) block of extra-firm tofu
- 1/4 cup (20g) nutritional yeast
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- Kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper
- 1 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small lemon, zested + 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 cup (240g) canned pumpkin purée
- ½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/2 cup (50-60g) vegan parmesan cheese* (optional but recommended)
Pasta
- 10 to 12 oz (~300g) jumbo pasta shells
- 2 to 3 teaspoons olive oil
Infused Milk
- 2 cups (480 mL) full-fat oat milk**
- 6 to 8 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 sprig fresh sage
- 1 bay leaf
- Freshly grated nutmeg
Garlic & Leek Béchamel Sauce
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 medium leeks*** (1 pound or 450g pre-trimmed)
- 6 cloves garlic
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- ¼ cup (32g) all-purpose flour
- Infused Milk
Fried Sage Leaves (optional)
- 1 cup (210g) neutral-flavored oil of choice
- 20 to 30 leaves fresh sage
Instructions
- Make the Pumpkin Tofu Ricotta. Drain the tofu and dab away some excess water with a towel. Place the tofu in a food processor. Add in the nutritional yeast, garlic powder, onion powder, extra virgin olive oil, lemon zest, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt, and a generous amount of pepper. Blend until the mixture is creamy and thick, scraping down the sides as you go. Taste, adding more salt or lemon juice as desired.
- Transfer ricotta to a medium bowl. Add in the pumpkin, nutmeg, and parmesan cheese (if using). Fold together using a silicone spatula. Taste the filling and adjust the seasonings accordingly, adding more salt, pepper, or nutmeg as needed. Refrigerate until ready to use.
- Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil for the jumbo shells.
- While the water comes to a boil, infuse the milk. In a saucepan, combine the oat milk, thyme and sage sprigs, bay leaf, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, several cracks of pepper, and a few grates of fresh nutmeg, if desired. Heat over medium-low heat and gradually bring it to a gentle simmer. Once gently simmering, remove from the heat. Strain the milk in a sieve, discarding the herb sprigs and bay leaf. Set aside to cool.
- Prepare the leeks. While the water is coming to a boil, peel the tough outer layers and discard, along with any bruised tops. Slice the leeks pretty thinly, about 1/8” (.3 cm) thick, including the dark green tops. Add the leeks to a large bowl and cover with cold water.a. Let rest for a few minutes. In the meantime, chop the garlic.b. Run your hands in the water to loosen the dirt from the leeks, then scoop the leeks out using your hands or a slotted spoon (don’t drain or the dirt will go back into the leeks). Pat the leeks dry.
- Cook the pasta. Once the water is boiling, salt the water generously. Add the shells and cook according to the box instructions’ minimum cook time for just al dente (do not overcook!), stirring occasionally. Drain well and transfer cooked shells to a sheet pan. Drizzle with just a little olive oil to prevent sticking.
- Arrange an oven rack in the middle and preheat the oven to 350°F (or 175°C).
- Make the Béchamel Sauce. Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat with the 4 TBSP olive oil. Once hot, add the leeks and season with a generous pinch of salt. Cook for 7 to 9 minutes, or until quite soft and starting to brown on the edges.
- Scoop out a bit more than half of the leeks into a bowl. Set aside.
- Add the garlic and red pepper flakes to the leeks. Cook for 60 to 90 seconds, stirring frequently to prevent burning. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Add the flour, whisking or stirring constantly for 1 minute until thick. Gradually pour in the Infused Milk in stages, whisking after each addition to prevent clumps. Cook for 2 to 4 minutes, stirring frequently, until the sauce has thickened. Take off the heat.
- Blend the sauce. Transfer the sauce to a blender. Blend until the sauce is smooth and creamy. Taste the sauce for seasonings, adding salt or pepper as needed.
- Assemble. Spoon the pumpkin ricotta filling into each jumbo pasta shell.a. Pour a thin layer of the Béchamel Sauce on the bottom of a 13×9 baking dish. Arrange the stuffed jumbo shells on top of the sauce. Scatter the reserved sautéed leeks on top.b. Pour the remaining Béchamel Sauce on top of the shells. Bake the stuffed shells for about 22 minutes, or until the pasta shells are lightly golden on the edges.
- While the shells bake, make the fried sage leaves, if using. Pour the oil into a medium saucepan and set over medium-high heat. Bring the oil up to 350ºF to 360ºF (~180ºC); it will take 5-10 minutes. Meanwhile, line the sheet pan used to store the pasta shells with a few layers of paper towels.a. To test if the oil is hot enough, add one sage leaf. If it sizzles quite a lot immediately, it’s hot enough. Add the rest of the sage leaves and stir with a slotted spoon or spider. Once the bubbles become less intense, 20 to 40 seconds, use the slotted spoon to scoop the leaves out of the oil and onto the lined sheet pan.b. Season the leaves lightly with kosher salt. The sage will get crisp as it cools.
- Top the warm stuffed shells with whole fried sage leaves, or use your hands to crush up the crispy sage leaves all over the shells. Serve warm.
Notes
No surprise this is delicious, like all of your divine creations. I made the gourmet version (no subs and all options) for Thanksgiving and what a treat. The infused milk was so good that I made a second batch of Béchamel for mashed potatoes. Some might have visions of sugar plums, but mine are all about what else can I pour this over that is not just a spoon!
This is an A+ comment. The infused milk with mashed potatoes sounds like heaven. I know what I’ll be doing for Christmas!
I made this for Thanksgiving this year and it was phenomenal. Even my dad loved it and he’s the kind of guy who makes rabbit food jokes. I made v1 of the recipe and def want to try v2 (I was accidentally looking at the old ingredients list while grocery shopping, oops!)
Also wanted to note that when I got back home after Thanksgiving, I still had enough of most of the ingredients on hand to make a second batch, but I was out of a few things so I made some swaps. I didn’t have any jumbo shells so I instead made it as a baked ziti. I was also out of coconut milk so I used oat milk instead. I gotta say, folks, don’t improvise on this one! Follow the recipe as written, get these exact ingredients. The ziti worked ok but using oat milk changed the texture of the béchamel sauce pretty significantly. It is still edible and decently tasty but nothing like the spectacularness I got the first time around.
Thank you, Nisha! I’ve made a ton of recipes of yours and they’re all incredible!
Thanks for the thorough review, Ruby! It warms our hearts to hear you’re such a fan of the recipe. I tried v2 this Thanksgiving and it was a hit- I hope you get the chance to try it very soon! :)
Can the sage leaves be done ahead as well? Having to fry something while doing a bunch of other items for holiday could be challenging.😉
They can be fried up to one day in advance, or if you can, the morning of the holiday dinner. Store them on a paper towel lined surface to help keep them crisp. Hope you enjoy the dish, Angela!
I made this tonight and it’s delightful, delicious, comforting, autumnal, and looks gorgeous out of the oven. I’d love to share a pic!
Thank you!!
Hi Ilsita, it’s great to hear you had success with the recipe. Thanks for the review!
I made it exactly as laid out here and it was delicious. Prep time is definitely not 10 min. Heck the pasta takes 15 to cook but the time spent is well worth it. I made 32 shells so four of us got 8 and it was filling but only one person couldn’t finish it all. It was very satisfying and tasty. The lemon zest really popped in this dish too. Will definitely be making this again.
We’re happy to hear you enjoyed the shells, Curtis! I’ll have to try this recipe myself this Thanksgiving :)
Hi! Any substitutions or options for people that don’t like sage? Thank you!
If you’d like the woodsy flavor, I’d recommend chopping up ~ 5 to 8 sprigs of fresh thyme leaves, or 1 sprig of rosemary. You can add that to the garlic when making the bechamel sauce and saute with the garlic. Otherwise, you can top the baked stuffed shells with some fresh basil or flat-leaf parsley, chopped up. Hope you enjoy!
I have a garlic allergy, is it good with only the onions in it? Should I double the amount? What else could be added?
If I want to use regular ricotta how much should I use? 1 cup?
Hi Sarah, we’re vegan and don’t cook with dairy products, so I’m afraid we cannot advise you about whether it will work in this recipe.
Sarah, you can probably just substitute ricotta for the same amount of tofu that would be used (plus or minus a bit). That’s what the tofu + nutritional yeast is replacing. I do this kind of thing all the time, varying up recipes based on what I have.
Hi Angie, I would suggest using more onion in the bechamel sauce (maybe a large one) to add more of that savory flavor. For the pumpkin ricotta filling, instead of the garlic powder, consider adding a bit more onion powder and a bit more nutritional yeast, to taste. Hope that helps!
Yet another amazing recipe! Thank you! My husband said this is top 5 and when you have as many recipes “on rotation” as I do that is a huge rating! I added vegan parmesan to the bechamel sauce as well and that was great. I wondered about adding nutritional yeast to the sauce instead of vegan parmesan. Have you tried that? Thoughts?
Woohoo, thanks for the wonderful comment, Jen!
And as for the nooch, the parmesan is technically optional, so you can omit it. If you want more of a subtle cheesy flavor, you can add more nutritional yeast to the tofu ricotta (try an extra 2 tablespoons, taste, then adjust accordingly.