As Good As It Gets Spaghetti
(Spaghetti Squash That Is)
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My husband and I love spaghetti squash for a vitamin packed meal that fills us up. I ran across this recipe a couple of months ago and it is our new favorite. If you haven't cooked spaghetti squash before, this recipe helps you see how easy it is to use. PLUS - no dishes!! Spread the baking sheet with foil and it doesn't even get dirty. Here it is:
Baked Margherita Spaghetti Squash
1 large spaghetti squash
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large Roma tomato, finely chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 teaspoon each salt and pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Using a large knife or a cleaver, slice the squash in half lengthwise down the middle.
- Use a spoon to remove the seeds and center strings. (I like using a plastic ice cream scoop on squash - it works so well!)
- Drizzle the two halves with the olive oil and spread it all over the squash.
- Sprinkle both evenly with the salt, pepper and garlic powder.
- Place the squash, open side down on a baking sheet covered with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven, check to see if the squash is soft and easily comes up with a fork into a spaghetti-like strands. If it's too hard to shred into strands, bake for another 10 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, scrape into strands and fluff with a fork. Leave the squash 'noodles' in the cut skins.
- Turn the oven to broil.
- Add the tomatoes and fresh basil into the squash. Stir together well and top with the cheese.
- Leaving the two loaded squash halves on the baking sheet, place them under the broiler for 3-4 minutes, until the cheese is melted and slightly browned.
- Cool slightly and serve.
Notes: I use about a cup of chopped tomato. The sweeter and juicier the tomatoes, the more we enjoy this dish. You could substitute spaghetti sauce for the tomatoes. And you can always move the shredded squash to a bowl and serve it just like spaghetti with your favorite meat sauce!
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