Baked Pasta With Tofu Cheese (Vegan)

Submitted by Prose

"More vegan comfort food! I modified this recipe from the Whole Foods Web site. In place of (or in addition to) the mushrooms try black olives, vegetarian pepperoni slices, bell peppers, artichoke hearts...whatever you wish. Works well with gluten-free pasta. Serve with salad and garlic bread."

 

• Ready In: 40mins
• Ingredients: 12
• Serves: 6

ingredients

• 8 ounces small whole wheat pasta shells
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 (16 ounce) jar marinara sauce
• 1 (10 ounce) can sliced mushrooms, drained
• 1 (10 ounce) package silken tofu
• 1⁄4 cup nutritional yeast
• 1 teaspoon mustard
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon dried basil or 1 teaspoon italian seasoning
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1⁄2 1/2 cup rice parmesan-style cheese (optional) or 1/2 cup additional nutritional yeast (optional)
• salt and black pepper

directions

1. Preheat oven to 375°F Cook pasta in boiling salted water according to package instructions. Mix mushrooms into marinara. Drain pasta well and transfer to a 7-x-11-inch baking dish. Stir in olive oil and a cup of the pasta sauce. Set aside.
2. Put tofu, nutritional yeast, mustard, onion powder, basil, garlic, salt and pepper in the bowl of a food processor. Process until the mixture reaches the consistency of ricotta cheese. Taste and adjust seasonings.
3. Spread tofu mixture over the cooked pasta and top with remaining pasta sauce. Sprinkle with vegan cheese or additional nutritional yeast, if desired. Bake until bubbly, 30 to 40 minutes. Serve immediately.

Reviews

[magpie diner]

This turned out really well and was just the ticket for a quick vegan meal today. I had a big batch of Recipe #332598 leftover, so quickly boiled up some rice pasta noodles and voila...a great pasta dish. I think the tofu layer would be fabulous in most anything and might try putting it on top next time. I didn't even use fresh garlic this time because I was so short on time. Thanks Prose, another great one!