OVERVIEW
We often hear from customers who have special dietary needs. One such gentleman who visited us at the farmer’s market told us of his love for spaghetti but his hatred of his dreadful celiac disease. Being of Italian decent it was important for him to find a way to continue his love affair with spaghetti. Because he cannot eat gluten, he improvises. He uses spaghetti squash in place of noodles. Then he simply uses tomato sauce as he normally would. Voila – spaghetti sans gluten.
Even if you don’t have celiac disease this low calorie, low carb dish is delicious and a good way to incorporate more veggies in your diet. Spaghetti squash is high in beta-carotene, Vitamin A, folic acid and potassium. I love that our customer shared his personal food journey and recipe. Here is my version of the recipe.
Prep Time: 1 hour to cook the spaghetti squash. 15 minutes for the marinara sauce if you’re starting from an existing jar of sauce.
Ingredients:
- 1 spaghetti squash (1 for every 2 people)
- 1/3 onion (diced)
- 1 stalk green onion (chopped)(replant the bulb – it will keep giving you food)
- 3 cloves garlic (sliced)
- 5 large leaves fresh sweet basil (chopped)
- Salt
- Pepper
- 2 T of Organic Original Dipping Sauce – Hot or Medium
- 1 jar marinara sauce that you’ll want to improve further
- 1 T coconut oil or olive oil
- Grated cheese (I like extra sharp organic cheddar and most other cheeses, too.)
Instructions:
Cook Squash
Preheat oven to 400 F. Cut the squash into halves lengthwise. Scrape seeds out of squash with a spoon or ice cream scoop. Sprinkle the cut side with a bit of salt and bake cut-side down for 1 hour. You should be able to poke a fork through the skin when it’s done. After the squash is done, turn right side up and place a little butter inside each portion. Leave squash in the oven. Turn off oven while you finish your sauce.
Prepare Sauce
In a saute pan or skillet, saute onion, green onion, and garlic, in coconut or olive oil until onions are translucent. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add basil leaves. Top with jar of marinara sauce. Add 2 T of Organic Original Dipping Sauce – Hot or Medium to your desired level of heat. Continue to simmer for 15 minutes.
Plate and Enjoy
Spoon out spaghetti squash into individual serving dishes and top with marinara sauce. Add your favorite grated cheese and top with more fresh chopped basil if desired. Buon Appetito!
