Baked Spaghetti (Spaghetti Squash)

We harvested lots of spaghetti squash from our garden last year, and we stored it in a cardboard box in our utility room over the winter.  Spaghetti squash is called a 'winter' squash because though it grows in the summer, and is harvested at the end of summer, it nicely stores over the winter in a dark, cool, dry place.  Spaghetti squash grows well in the Dallas area and is a great addition to your garden if you have the space to grow it.

 

This is a great spaghetti recipe because it is not loaded with flour noodles, thus it is filled with lots of nutrients.  The key to making a delicious baked spaghetti with spaghetti squash noodles is baking it uncovered long enough so it is not watery.  My husband has perfected this recipe (since we had two big boxes of spaghetti squash, we had lots to experiment with over the winter) and it is delicious. 

 

This recipe makes two large 9" x 13" glass rectangular pans.  It is so nice to have a second large pan to eat for dinner a few days later.  Be sure to place the cold second pan that has been stored in the refrigerator into a cold oven when you reheat it.  It reheats well, taking about 45 minutes at 350 °F.  Heat for first 35 minutes covered, then uncover for the last 10 minutes.

Ingredients:

1 large spaghetti squash, or 3 small, baked
1 lb ground beef, browned

1 medium yellow onion, diced
3 jalapeno peppers, diced finely
1 large green bell pepper, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced

1 large Portobello mushroom, diced
1 28-oz can of diced tomatoes (Bionaturae or Muir Glen)
1 14-oz can of diced tomatoes with green chili (Muir Glen)
~ 2 cups strained tomatoes (Bionaturae)
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp pure honey

1 - 2 cups shredded Mozzarella or Jack cheese, shredded



Rinse spaghetti squash, poke holes in it, and bake in a glass baking dish at 425 °F for about 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until soft.  Let cool (I usually bake it in the morning and let it cool for an hour or two so I don't burn my fingers when getting out the 'spaghetti' noodles).  Once cool, cut in half, through the stem.  Take a spoon and clean out the seeds and inner strings.  Then take a fork and scrape out the 'noodles' into a bowl.  Reserve until ready to use (place covered in refrigerator if not using right away - stores well for a few days).

 

Brown the meat, and then sauté all the vegetables, except the mushrooms, in a bit of olive oil in large glass pot.  Next add the remaining ingredients, except the cheese and spaghetti squash, and simmer the spaghetti sauce for at least 20 minutes.

 

When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 °F and add spaghetti squash noodles to the spaghetti sauce.  Gently stir to coat all noodles with sauce.  Grease two large baking dishes with olive oil, and divide the spaghetti between the two pans.  Place in 350 °F oven and bake uncovered for 20 minutes.  Remove from oven and sprinkle on cheese.  Return to oven and bake for another 20 minutes.  Each pan serves 4 to 6 adults.