Stuffed Spaghetti Squash

Many of you know my love for spaghetti squash (which is not necessarily a love shared by dear Hubby, but he makes due and supports my obvious obsession), and I was super hungry for some last week.  Sadly, I could only find a teeny tiny one in my grocery store, but figured that maybe it was a good idea since many times, I have lots of innards leftover after baking.

If you, too, are a lover of this yellow oblong-shaped squash of goodness, this recipe is for you!

Ingredients:

2 small/medium sized spaghetti squash

1 ½ cups turkey sausage crumbles – I used Jimmy Dean for ease!  You can certainly sub lean ground beef or turkey

2 ½ cups prepared pasta sauce – I used one can of Hunt’s Garlic & Herb

1 cup reduced fat shredded mozzarella cheese

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

2T fresh chopped basil or 1 ½ tsp dried

Salt & pepper, to taste

Preparation:

Preheat your oven to 400.

Slice the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds.  Optional:  spray the inside of the squash with olive oil spray and salt and pepper. 

At this point, you can either microwave the squash (for a small one 7 minutes on high / for a larger one 10-12 minutes on high), placing the squash on a microwave safe dish, or bake it in the oven (insides facing down) on a foil-lined baking sheet for 20-25 minutes.  I was short on time, so I microwaved!

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan on medium heat, heat the sauce and turkey crumbles to simmer.

Once the squash has been cooked – be careful, it will be hot! - scrape out the insides with a fork, making the lovely “spaghetti” strings we know and love.  Place the scooped-out insides into the saucepan with the sauce and crumbles. 

Place the squash shells back onto the foil-lined baking sheet facing up.  We are going to fill those.

Mix the spaghetti squash insides with the sauce and crumbles to incorporate and remove from heat.

Fill each spaghetti squash half with some of the sauce mixture.

Sprinkle 2T of Parmesan cheese onto each half, then sprinkle ¼ cup of mozzarella onto each half.

Sprinkle basil onto each half.

Bake the squash until the cheese is melty and beginning to brown.

Remove from the oven and cool for about 5 minutes before diving in – just a warning from my burned tongue…couldn’t help it, it looked so yum!

Enjoy! 

Hello lover:

This is AFTER I dug my fork into it and BEFORE I burned my tongue - SOOO worth it...

Nutrition:

Serves 4 (one half each)

Calories 283 / Carbs 28g / Fat 12g / Protein 21g / Fiber 7g / Sodium 1492mg (please note that the sauce you choose to use can raise or lower the overall sodium & calorie amount)