How To Cook Spaghetti Squash
This spaghetti squash provides a really tasty dish that replaces those nasty simple pasta carbs with a healthier & even tastier version.
The visual impact of this spaghetti squash dish is important as the cooked “spaghetti” squash strands almost has you believing that you’re eating spaghetti.
Furthermore, not only is this spaghetti squash recipe so easy to prepare, but it can be made more interesting & tasty by adding mince meatballs or your favourite sauce.
Before you start, it’s worth noting that this spaghetti squash recipe is both Banting and Paleo friendly, so you can eat to your heart’s delight without worrying about weight gain while maintaining your healthy eating habits.
Spaghetti Squash Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 large spaghetti squash (or 2 smaller ones)
- 4 egg whites, whisked
- 1 lb. ground beef (500g)
- 1 egg
- ½ cup dried parsley
- ½ tbsp dried basil
- ½ tbsp dried thyme
- 4 large cloves garlic, minced
- Cooking fat (Paleo & Banting friendly such as duck fat, ghee, avocado, olive oil or lard)
- Sea salt & ground black pepper
Directions
- Preheat your oven to 220°C
- To reduce the amount of moisture, cut the spaghetti squash in half (from top to bottom), remove all the seeds & lightly rub some olive into it.
- Place the spaghetti squash face down on a baking sheet & bake for half an hour until its soft
- Once the spaghetti squash is cooked, use a fork to scoop the stringy pulp from the squash and place in a bowl
- Combine the ground beef, dried parsley, dried basil, dried thyme & the egg – season to taste with salt & pepper.
- With your hands form the meat into meatballs of about 2cm to 3cm in diameter
- In a large skillet placed over a medium heat, sauté the meatballs until browned on all sides
- Add the tomato sauce to the meatballs & cook for 10 minutes to ensure the meatballs are cooked through.
- Lower the oven’s heat to 175°C
- Mix the egg white with the spaghetti squash
- Using a muffin baking tin fill each cavity with the squash mix, pressing down in the middle to making a neat nest in each one for a meat ball
- Then place the baking tin in the oven for about 15 minutes
- Serve with sauce if required
Ingredients & Directions For Tomato (Napoletana) Sauce (More Sauce Options Below…)
- 2 cups tomato sauce
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- ½ tbsp dried parsley
- ½ tbsp dried basil
- ½ tbsp dried thyme
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Combine all the ingredients for the tomato sauce and season to taste in a bowl
- Add the tomato sauce to the browned meatballs in the skillet and cook for 7 to 10 minutes, or until the meatballs are cooked through
Sauce Options For This Recipe
- Meatballs
- Mince
- Meat sauce
- Tomatoes and tomato sauce with seasoning (Napoletana sauce)
- Marinara sauce
- Parmesan or grated cheese
- Garlic, onions, peppers and/or chilli
- Basil and thyme
- Mushroom sauce
I’ve included meatballs with this spaghetti squash recipe, however you can replace them with meat sauce or any of your favourite pasta sauces and options above.
Health Benefits Of Spaghetti Squash
When it comes to healthy eating, you can rest assured that this recipe is low-carb, healthy and free of simple carbs or any other nasty ingredients that cause weight gain, diabetes or impact your health in other ways.
Not only is spaghetti squash a great alternative to the traditional spaghetti pasta, but it has plenty of healthy eating benefits too.
For instance, it’s rich in vitamins like vitamin C, vitamin B6, betacarotene as well as fiber and antioxidants.
Besides its nutritional value, it’s also low in calories whilst providing a satisfying meal.
For example, whilst a cup of spaghetti squash is a pretty decently sized serving, it only contains approximately 40 calories which is considerably less than the equivalent amount of pasta & carbs.
Lastly, eating the same sized serving of pasta will probably leave you hungry and wanting more carbs, contrary to eating a good serving of this spaghetti squash which will nourish and satisfy you.
Give it a try, I’m sure you’ll love it.
For More Delicious Low-Carb Recipes…
Download Your Collection Of 470 Paleo Recipes & 10-Week Meal Plan here »