Vegan Manicotti
Delicious vegan stuffed manicotti noodles, filled with a creamy veggie and ricotta cheese-like mixture, covered with marinara sauce and baked to perfection. The perfect, warm, comfort food for a cold day, or any other day for that matter. This manicotti is so easy to make and beginner friendly. The perfect vegan dish to serve to vegans and non-vegans alike!
What is Manicotti?
Manicotti is a traditional Italian dish known for its rich and creamy filling. Manicotti noodles are traditionally stuffed with a mixture of vegetables, sauce, and cheese. However, this vegan manicotti checks all the boxes of traditional manicotti taste and texture, without the cheese!
Cashews and tofu make the base of the vegan ricotta and both are nutrient-dense foods. Cashews, with their rich buttery flavor, are one of the most popular and versatile nuts to cook with. They contain copper, zinc, potassium, magnesium, B vitamins, Vitamin K, folate, and omega-3 fatty acids. Cashews are also a great source of dietary iron and protein. Tofu, made from pressed soybeans, is also a great source of protein. It has no cholesterol and, in studies, has been shown to reduce the risk of certain types of cancers, heart disease, and stroke.
Why We LoveThis Vegan Manicotti Recipe
This vegan cashew ricotta manicotti recipe is so creamy and flavorful that it’s hard to stop eating! We are not fans of manufactured vegan cheeses so we prefer to make our own, and this vegan cashew ricotta will make you never miss dairy cheese ever again! We never feel guilty about indulging in this rich and creamy Italian dish since each ingredient is loaded with nutrients and health benefits!
How to Make Vegan Manicotti
First, boil water and cook manicotti noodles per instructions on the box (~10 minutes) until al dente. You do not want to overcook the noodles or they will be too soft to stuff and will fall apart. Drain manicotti noodles and cover with cool water to stop the cooking process and prevent noodles from sticking to each other and the pan. Drain water a final time after noodles have cooled.
While the noodles are cooking, make the filling. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add olive oil and when hot sauté onion until translucent, approximately 4-5 minutes.
Add the spinach and cook until completely wilted and the water has been cooked away. Set aside to cool.
Add the cashews to a food processor and on low setting process until fine and crumbly. They should start to stick together slightly on the sides.
Add tofu, nutritional yeast, and spices to pureed cashews in the food processor.
Blend on low until mixture is homogeneous. You may need to pause to scrape down the sides of the food processor a couple times. The texture should be smooth and creamy.
Now add the cooked onion and spinach mixture and blend until smooth. Cut the corner off of a gallon size plastic baggie. Spoon ricotta mixture into baggie. This is how you will pipe cashew ricotta mixture into manicotti noodles.
Add a portion of the pasta sauce to bottom of pan to coat the bottom a thin layer.
Pipe ricotta mixture into each manicotti noodle. You may need to pipe mixture into both ends of the noodles to fill completely. Place filled noodles in a baking dish.
Once all noodles are filled, cover noodles with marinara sauce.
Smooth sauce to cover entire top of pasta. Any exposed parts will get slightly crispy during cooking, so its best to cover all surfaces if possible. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes
Remove and garnish with basil or other fresh herbs. Serve and enjoy!
Vegan Manicotti (Stuffed Noodles)
Ingredients
- 1 package manicotti noodles (8oz, 12 noodles)
- 24 oz prepared marinara sauce (1 jar)
- 2 cups cashews (raw or roasted, roasted will be slightly nuttier)
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 white or yellow onion finely chopped
- 2 cups fresh spinach
- 14 oz firm tofu (1 package) liquid drained
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
- 1/4 cup lemon juice (approx. 1 lemon)
- 1/3 cup water
- 2 tsp dried basil
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 bunch fresh basil chopped (optional for garnish)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add the manicotti noodles. Cook for 9 minutes or per instructions on box, until just done. Drain and rinse with cold water so they are only slightly warm to the touch. Set aside.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add olive oil and when hot sauté onion until translucent, approximately 4-5 minutes. Add the spinach and cook until completely wilted and the water has been cooked away. Set aside to cool.
- Add the cashews to a food processor and on low setting process until fine and crumbly. They should start to stick together slightly on the sides.
- Add remaining ingredients to the food processor, except the onions and spinach. Process until smooth, occasionally scraping the sides as needed. Now add the onion and spinach mixture and process until the mixture is nicely blended.
- In a large glass baking dish, spread 1 cup of the sauce on the bottom to create a thin layer.
- Stuff each individual manicotti shell with the veggie ricotta mixture. Either use a spoon or my preferred method is to place the mixture in a strong, sealable quart size bag (e.g. Ziploc), clip the corner, and use the bag to pipette the mixture into the noodles. Fill noodle halfway and then repeat on the other side.
- Place each stuffed noodle in the baking dish. You may have a couple noodles that break which is ok, there is usually a couple extra. When complete spread remaining sauce evenly on the top of the noodles.
- Bake, uncovered, for 25-30 minutes until the sauce is bubbly and has darkened in color slightly. Garnish with chopped basil if desired. Use a spatula to serve and enjoy.