Happy National Pumpkin Day! 🎃

In honor of National Pumpkin Day (and since yesterday was World Pasta Day), I decided to make these brown rice pasta shells stuffed with pumpkin tofu ricotta.

One of my favorite recipe creators of all time is Hummusapien. I slightly tweaked her recipe for the tofu pumpkin ricotta and then used it to stuff shells!

Pumpkin Tofu Ricotta:

Ingredients-

• 16 oz package of extra firm tofu 

• 1/4 cup pumpkin purée

• 1/3 cup garlic hummus 

• 2 Tbsp Majestic creamy raw garlic spread

• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast

• 1/2 tsp sage

• pinch salt and pepper 

*recipe modified from Hummusapien 

Pumpkin Garlic Sauce:

Ingredients-

• 4 cloves garlic, raw

• 1/2 tsp Garlic & onion powder 

• 3/4 cup plant based milk

• 1/4 cup pumpkin purée 

Directions:

1. Drain tofu.

2. While tofu is draining, cook brown rice pasta shells.

3. In large bowl, mash drained tofu with hands (or potato masher).

4. Mix in the rest of the tofu ricotta ingredients.

5. Stuff cooked shells with tofu ricotta and place in baking dish.

6. Blend sauce ingredients together.

7. Pour sauce over stuffed shells.

8. Bake for 15-20 mins at 350*F (I find it best to prepare these the day before baking to allow for flavors to set in...can't wait to enjoy these for dinner tonight!). 

ENJOY!

I made LOTS of pumpkin, so I also made some tasty pumpkin banana bread and because I hate being wasteful, I also baked the pumpkin seeds for a crunchy snack!

Pumpkin Nutritional Benefits:

Not only are pumpkins a beautiful decoration, they're also great for the plethora of nutrients they have to offer!

These include:

• Vitamins A, C & E

• B Vitamins such as Niacin, Thiamin, Pantothenic Acid & Pyridoxine

• Minerals such as Potassium, Magnesium, Manganese, Iron & Copper

• Fiber!

What's your favorite pumpkin dish?