Its been a while since I've had spaghetti squash and now that I have eaten it, I don't know why I stopped. But before I go on about how I love substituting spaghetti squash for pasta, let me make one thing clear- pasta is life and there is no replacement for it. Pasta is pasta and spaghetti squash isn't pasta. BUT when I'm trying to eat clean and I'm craving pasta, I will eat spaghetti squash to substitute the carbs and extra calories. You just have to be realistic that even though the name is spaghetti squash, it's not pasta.
That being said, I am all about spaghetti squash. I like how there's a little bite to it and I love how it feels like there are noodles on your tongue and even more, I love that it takes on whatever flavors you add to it. By using my leftover Alfredo sauce, it gave the dish the fattiness it needed to it didn't feel like you were eating a big bowl of veggies.
So I used the Alfredo sauce, some of the caramelized onions, and leftover lemon ricotta. I added all of that to a small pot with a tsp of minced garlic and 2 sage leaves. The new ingredients I added were chicken and spaghetti squash. Also, if you're iffy about spaghetti squash, my husband ate it up with a smile on his face and he is not about eating vegetables!
Hope you enjoy!
*Ingredients
1 medium spaghetti squash (about 2 cups)
Leftover Alfredo sauce (about 1 cup)
Leftover caramelized onions (about 1/4 cup)
Leftover lemon ricotta (about 1/4 cup)
tsp minced garlic
2-5 sage leaves
2 chicken breasts (husbands was 8 oz, mine 4 oz)
salt/pepper
*Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees and line a pan with aluminum foil, spray with non stick spray, and set aside. Prepare your chicken by cutting off excess fat and seasoning with salt and pepper. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until fully cooked.
I was lazy and used my microwave to cook my spaghetti squash. While my chicken was cooking, I carefully pierced my spaghetti squash all around it. In a microwave safe bowl, I cooked my squash in 5 minute intervals, rotating it after every 5 minutes. It will probably take about 10-15 minutes, depending on the size of your squash. You'll know it is done once your squash is soft but be careful, it will be really hot.
So while my chicken and my squash are cooking, I added my Alfredo, garlic, ricotta, onions, and sage leaves. I cooked it until it was rich and creamy just like it was when it was freshly made.
When the chicken is done, set it aside and let it rest for 10 minutes, then cut it into bite sized pieces; set aside. When the Alfredo got to temperature, I kept it on the lowest temperature possible.
When my squash was done I took it out of the microwave and let it cool slightly so I can handle it. Take a large knife and cut the squash vertically. Once split, scoop out the seeds and discard them. Next, take a fork and scrape the squash. This will give your squash the spaghetti look that it gets its name from!
Place 1 cup of squash in your bowl, season with salt and pepper. Next add your chopped chicken and add 1/4-1/2 cup of your Alfredo sauce to top it off. Mix bowl and enjoy!
**If you don't have these leftover ingredients, just reference my previous post on the caramelized bacon alfredo pizza and all the recipes are there.
No comments:
Post a Comment