What?! Spaghetti squash for spaghetti?!

Sorry it's been a while since I posted, good grief school really decided to turn things up this week. 4 papers due by Sunday and unlike my daughters 3rd grade papers that only need to be one to two paragraphs, mine all need to be 4 to 6 pages! Oh well, I'll get it done and move on to the next thing! But while a take a break from my papers I was thinking of you guys and decided to post a quick and easy recipe I use almost weekly!

   So one thing I like to do with food, is change things up a bit. Sometimes it doesn't have to be a big change just a few ingredients here and there or in this case taking a spaghetti squash and using that as noodles in my regular spaghetti night. The great thing about spaghetti squash is it really doesn't have much flavor so you can use it as a savory or even as a sweet part of your dish. I'm going to give you my super easy spaghetti recipe but if you wanted to try it as a sweet all you would do after you cook it and pull the "noodles" out is add cinnamon, sugar ( I like coconut sugar) and a little nutmeg. Mix that around and it's a really awesome little snack and the "noodles" keep a bit of a crunch to them so the texture is awesome! Of course instead of the sugar you could do honey or maple syrup as well but my kids prefer the cinnamon and sugar way.

First things first, how to cook the spaghetti squash. There are a few different ways you can do it but to me this is one of the fastest and easiest ways.

Cut the top off of the squash (where the stem is or would be) that will give you a flat surface, then put the squash on that end standing up and cut it in half length wise. 

Scoop out the seeds and then season with salt and pepper

Next grab a glass pan or even a cookie sheet and put enough water in it to just cover the bottom of whatever pan you are using so the squash doesn't burn and it helps the cooking process. 

Then put your squash cut side down onto the pan and place in the oven at 350 degrees for about 30 min. You will know it's done when you stick a fork in the shell and it easily pierces the skin. 

Take it out, let it cool for a bit so it's easier to handle, then with a fork start at the top and just drag the fork down to the bottom of the shell, making "noodles"!!

For the Sauce:

1 15oz can of tomato sauce

1 6oz can of tomato paste

4 or 5 Roma tomatoes chopped

2 cloves of garlic diced

1/2 a yellow onion diced

1 TBS coconut oil

1 lb ground meat ( any kind works great with this, beef, turkey, chicken)

Italian spices or make your own combination. I usually do oregano, parsley, thyme, rosemary, basil and sage. (all dried)

Alright here we go;

Put your oil in a deep pan on med high heat, then add your diced garlic and onion, season with salt and pepper and let that sweat out till the onions are translucent. Just a couple minutes.

Then add in your ground meat and let that cook till it's just about done, or there is very little pink. Break it up mixing it with the onions and garlic.

Next add in the rest of the ingredients, the tomato sauce and paste, roughly chop the roma tomatoes and add those in and your spices along with a bit more salt and pepper to taste. Mix that all together till everything is coated. 

Turn down the heat and let that simmer for about 20 min, the longer you let it cook the more the flavors get together and the thicker the sauce will be. 

That's it, when your sauce is done, load up your spaghetti (squash or regular noodles) and you're good to go!

What other uses have you found for spaghetti squash? Or do you have a different sauce recipe you would like to share? I would love to hear from you and feature one of your recipes on the site!