Vegan Manicotti with Spinach and Bean Ricotta
This recipe for vegan manicotti with spinach and bean ricotta has all the deliciousness of hearty comfort food but it's secretly healthy. The spinach "ricotta" stuffing is made partly with white beans and all of it is drowned in tasty marinara sauce and baked with bubbly vegan mozzarella cheese. A soy-free recipe, can be nut-free and gluten-free.
Servings: 7 servings
Calories: 413kcal
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups white beans (canned or cooked and drained. I used navy beans. Any other white beans, including cannellini, baby limas or great northern beans are fine)
- ½ cup raw cashews (soaked in water for 30 minutes, then drained)
- 2 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large onion (finely chopped)
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 12 oz spinach (I used frozen chopped spinach, but fresh works too. Make sure you chop it into small bits before using)
- 8 oz vegan mozzarella shreds (divided)
- 2 tablespoon parsley (minced)
- 8 oz manicotti {or cannelloni). Let the pasta tubes cook in boiling water for about six minutes but don't cook them all the way. They will continue to cook in the oven.
- 1 recipe marinara sauce (approx 3 cups)
- Salt and ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Make the filling by placing the cashews in a blender or food processor with ½ cup water and process to a very smooth paste. Add the beans to the blender along with the nutritional yeast, onion powder, garlic powder, oregano, nutmeg and salt and ground black pepper to taste. Process until you have a smooth filling that should be stiff, not runny, so you can easily stuff the manicotti. Try not to use any more water while processing, but if your blades won't move, add a tablespoon or two.
- Heat oil in a saucepan. Add the onions and garlic and saute along with some salt and ground black pepper and saute until the onions turn soft but not brown. Add the spinach and saute until the spinach is soft and tender. Turn off the heat.
- Let the spinach mixture cool slightly, then stir in the cashew filling, half the mozzarella shreds and parsley. Mix well.
- Coat the bottom of a 13 by 9 inch baking dish with some cooking spray and ladle half the marinara (about 1 ½ cups) into the dish, spreading it evenly.
- Fill each manicotti cylinder with the stuffing and then place in the baking pan in a single layer on top of the marinara. My baking dish is a bit narrow, so I arranged them diagonally, which also looked really pretty.
- Spoon over the remaining marinara to cover the manicotti, and sprinkle on the remaining mozzarella shreds. You can drizzle on some olive oil at this stage to help add some moisture and richness to your dish, but it's optional.
- Bake for 35 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.
Notes
- To make this recipe gluten-free, use gf noodles
- To make it nut-free, skip the cashews and use more beans.
Nutrition
Serving: 2noodles | Calories: 413kcal | Carbohydrates: 57g | Protein: 16g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Potassium: 843mg | Fiber: 9g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 4653IU | Vitamin C: 17mg | Calcium: 128mg | Iron: 5mg