Baked And Sautéed Spaghetti Squash On A Bed Of Spinach Food

SPAGHETTI SQUASH WITH SAUTEED VEGGIES

Steps:

• Preheat your oven to 400°, line a medium baking sheet with foil, and lightly mist with cooking spray.
• On a work surface, drizzle about 2 tablespoons worth of the olive oil over both of the cut-sides of the spaghetti squash halves, then sprinkle over a generous amount of salt (squash needs it!), black pepper, the 1/2 teaspoon of granulated onion, 1/2 teaspoon of the granulated garlic, plus the Italian seasoning, equally.
• Place the two squash halves cut-side down onto the baking sheet and roast for 1 hour, or until easily pierced with a small paring knife and tender.
• While the spaghetti squash roasts, make your toasted breadcrumbs: add the panko breadcrumbs to a small bowl, add a sprinkle of salt, the remaining 1/4 teaspoon of granulated garlic, plus 1 teaspoon of olive oil, and use a fork to combine. Place a small pan over high heat, and once hot, add the seasoned crumbs to it, stirring constantly until golden-brown and toasted, about 1-2 minutes; set the toasted breadcrumbs aside.
• Once the spaghetti squash has baked, allow it to cool (cut-side up now) for about 20-25 minutes; once cool enough to handle, use a fork to scrape the squash flesh downwards away from the skin, fluffing it a bit to create the spaghetti strands. Scrape most of the flesh from each shell, leaving just a little bit around the edges to help maintain the shape of the shell, and place the scraped spaghetti squash strands into a large bowl to hold. Reserve the shells.
• To prepare your sauteed veggies, place a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat (I use my cast iron skillet for this), add a good amount of olive oil to it, and add in the sliced onions with a pinch or two of salt and pepper. Allow those onions to caramelize for about 12 minutes, stirring them frequently, until golden; once golden, drizzle in the balsamic and stir to combine, then remove the onions from the pan and place into a bowl to hold.
• To that same pan, add in a touch more oil as needed, then add the sliced mushrooms along with a pinch of salt and pepper. Saute the mushrooms until golden-brown, about 7 minutes, then remove those from the pan and add to the onions to hold.
• Now to the pan add the cherry tomatoes along with the small squeeze of lemon, and cook those for a few minutes until blistered, softened and beginning to break down and become juicy; once broken down, add in the garlic, stir until aromatic, then add back into the pan the onions and mushrooms, plus the spinach and the white beans, and stir to combine, adding more olive oil as needed to create a silky consistency.
• Turn off the heat under the sauteed veggies, check to see if any additional salt/pepper is needed, then add the spaghetti squash strands into the pan, gently tossing with tongs to combine them very well with all of the delicious sauteed veggies.
• To serve, divide the spaghetti squash/veggie mixture equally between the two reserved squash shells, sprinkle over some of the toasted breadcrumbs and parsley, plus some parmesan cheese (if using), and serve hot. (You can serve 1 full, stuffed spaghetti squash half per person, or cut each in half to make 4 smaller portions.)

CHEESY ROASTED GARLIC SPAGHETTI SQUASH WITH SPINACH

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Drizzle olive oil over the cut side of the spaghetti squash. Season with salt and black pepper. Place cut-side down on a baking sheet. Place unpeeled garlic on a piece of aluminum foil. Drizzle with olive oil. Wrap aluminum foil around garlic, and place onto baking sheet next to the squash.
• Bake in the preheated oven until squash is tender and easily pierced with a fork, 40 to 45 minutes. Allow squash and garlic to rest until cool enough to handle. Leave the oven on.
• Peel garlic and squeeze cloves into a large bowl. Smash with a fork until smooth. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil, onion powder, basil, oregano, and parsley. Mix into a paste.
• Use a fork to scrape out spaghetti squash strands into the bowl, reserving the shells. Toss spaghetti squash strands with the garlic paste until thoroughly coated. Mix in spinach, 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese, and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese; toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper.
• Fill each reserved spaghetti squash shell evenly with the filling. Sprinkle remaining mozzarella and Parmesan over the top. Return the filled shells to the baking sheet.
• Bake until cheeses melt, 7 to 10 minutes. Turn on broiler and broil until cheeses begin to brown and bubble, 3 to 5 minutes. Serve immediately.

CREAMY SPINACH SPAGHETTI SQUASH CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Slice spaghetti squash in half length-wise. Scoop out seeds and place cut side down in a glass baking dish. Pour 1/2 cup water into dish and bake for about 30-35 minutes. With a fork gently shred the pulp from the inside of the squash and set aside.Reduce oven heat to 375 degrees.
• On top of stove, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and red bell pepper. Sauté about 5 minutes, until tender. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
• Add the spinach to the skillet and season with the nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Cook and stir until the spinach is wilted.
• Gently stir in the cream cheese until melted. Add the spaghetti squash and stir until combined.
• Pour the mixture into a casserole dish that is lightly coated with cooking spray. Top with the mozzarella and parmesan cheese. Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes, or until bubbly and cheese is lightly browned.

BAKED AND SAUTéED SPAGHETTI SQUASH ON A BED OF SPINACH

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Pierce spaghetti squash in several places with a sharp knife. Cover a baking sheet with foil and place squash on top. Bake 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until squash is soft and easy to cut into with a knife. Remove from oven and allow to cool until you can handle it, then cut in half lengthwise and allow to cool some more. Scoop out seeds and discard. Scoop out flesh and place in a bowl. Run a fork through to separate the spaghetti-like strands.
• Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium-high heat in a heavy 12-inch skillet. Add half the garlic and as soon as it begins to sizzle and smell fragrant add spinach. It should wilt quickly in the liquid left on leaves after washing. Add salt to taste and toss in pan (tongs are a good tool for this) until all spinach has wilted, 2 to 3 minutes. Place a strainer or colander in the sink and drain spinach. Allow to drain while you sauté spaghetti squash.
• Wipe skillet and heat again over medium-high heat. Add remaining olive oil and breadcrumbs. When breadcrumbs are crisp, after about 1 minute, stir in remaining garlic, stir for a few seconds, until fragrant, and add spaghetti squash and salt to taste. Toss together over medium-high heat until the squash is infused with oil and breadcrumbs are beginning to color, 5 to 8 minutes. Add sumac if using and lots of freshly ground pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning. Remove from heat.
• Arrange spinach on a platter. Top with squash. Sprinkle Parmesan and walnuts over squash and drizzle on walnut oil. Serve hot.

GARLIC SPINACH SPAGHETTI

Steps:

• Cook the pasta in salted boiling water according to the package instructions. Drain, reserving 2/3 cup of the pasta water, then set aside.
• In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the garlic and crushed red pepper flakes and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 minutes.
• Add about one-fourth of the cooked pasta to the pan, followed by one-fourth of the spinach, one-fourth of the Parmesan, one-fourth of the lemon juice and one-fourth of the lemon zest, stirring all the time until the spinach has wilted, about 1 minute. Continue this process of adding the ingredients in quarters, with additions of pasta water as needed if the mixture becomes too dry, until the pasta, spinach, Parmesan, lemon juice and lemon zest have all been added.
• Sprinkle over more Parmesan and season with freshly cracked black pepper. Toss until everything is well coated. Taste and adjust the seasonings, as needed.

SPAGHETTI SQUASH SAUTE

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray, and place squash halves cut-side down on the sheet. Bake until squash is tender but still crunchy, about 40 minutes. Set aside to cool.
• Once cool enough to handle, shred squash flesh from rind using a fork. Set aside.
• Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Cook onion and garlic in butter until soft. Add squash to the skillet, and cook until hot. Season with salt and pepper.

SPAGHETTI SQUASH WITH TOMATOES SPINACH & GARLIC

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F Pierce squash with a fork and bake for approximately 60 minutes cut in half and in water. Let squash cool for 10 minutes.
• Discard the seeds in the center. Using a fork, scrape the squash to get long, spaghetti-like strands.
• In a large saute pan, heat olive oil over medium heat, add garlic and stir until fragrant.
• Turn down heat to low and add tomatoes. Continue to salute for 15 minutes. Add spinach and squash and continue to salute for another 2-3 minutes.
• Serve or add goat cheese and toasted pine nuts on top.