Gluten-Free Baked Stuffed Shells Recipe...Just a little shout out to one of my fave. "Go-to" GF blogs ( Gluten Free Goddess) I had to repost this Gluten AND dairy free Baked Stuff Shell's Recipe. Seriously mouth watering! And yes,there are vegan notes below, and info for those of you that want to use dairy. ENJOY!! <3

Click here for Recipe Source and PHOTOS!!!

Gluten-Free Baked Stuffed Shells Recipe

These gluten-free dairy-free Italian stuffed shells are lighter than traditional cheese-stuffed shells- and so fresh tasting. Chopped herbs, garlic, and crunchy bread crumbs work serious magic. This recipe is our current favorite comfort food. We make it once a week. Perfect for a chilly winter's night.

Ingredients:

1 8-oz box gluten-free grand pasta shells
4 breakfast sized sweet Italian sausages, chopped
2 cups baby spinach leaves, stemmed
1 14-oz tub organic soft tofu, drained, pressed to release water
1 large free-range organic egg, beaten
2 tablespoons Vegenaise (just trust me)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon mild GF curry powder
Sea salt and ground pepper, to taste
16 ounces good marinara sauce (Italian red pasta sauce)

For topping:

2 slices gluten-free sandwich bread, torn into several pieces
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried thyme
Drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
2-3 tablespoons almond meal
Sea salt, to taste
Chopped fresh parsley

Instructions:

Bring a large pot of salted water to a medium rolling boil, add the GF shells, lower the heat to medium-high and cook on high simmer for 6 minutes, gently stirring now and then, till softened but still firm. Drain well, separate the shells and set aside to cool.

Preheat the oven to 350º.

In a skillet, saute the sausage briefly, till golden and starting to brown a bit.

Rinse the spinach leaves and drain well. Add them to the sausages and stir till wilted; remove from heat.

Place the drained tofu in a bowl and use a potato masher to break up the tofu into "curds". Add in the egg, Vegenaise, parsley, nutmeg and curry. Stir briefly to combine. Season with sea salt and ground pepper, to taste.

Add in the sausage-spinach mixture and lightly stir.

Pour 3/4 cup marinara sauce into the bottom of a medium-sized baking dish and spread evenly.

Spoon the tofu mixture into the par-cooked shells and place them in the baking pan stuffing side up. Cover with remaining marinara sauce. (The sauce will help cook the partially cooked pasta shells.)

In a food processor, make the topping by processing the gluten-free bread into crumbs. Add in garlic, dried basil and thyme. Drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil into the crumbs and pulse until the crumbs are moist and fall away from the sides of the processor.

Sprinkle the top of the sauced shells with the breadcrumb mixture.

Sprinkle with almond meal; season the topping with sea salt.

Sprinkle with extra chopped parsley.

That's a lot of sprinkling. Welcome to my world.

Cover with a piece of foil and bake in the center of the oven until the shells are tender, the stuffing is piping hot, and the sauce is bubbling.

Makes 4 generous servings.

Karina's Notes:

Yes, you can use moo-cow dairy cheese instead; blend 14-ounces of ricotta cheese with a cup of shredded mozzarella, and use grated Parmesan on top.

If you must be egg-free, omit the egg from the filling.

To keep this vegan, omit the egg and Italian sausage. You might have a few unstuffed shells.

Recipe Source: glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com