This fabulous spaghetti squash recipe has all of the flavors of your favorite Italian dish without all of the fuss and carbs!
Hey, y'all! By now you probably know that I'm kind of obsessed with spaghetti squash. It's a fabulous, low-carb alternative to traditional pasta. Spaghetti squash is versatile and super easy to work with. Some of my favorite spaghetti squash recipes are BBQ Chicken Stuffed Spaghetti Squash, Chicken Parm Stuffed Spaghetti Squash, Southwestern Spaghetti Squash and Cheesy Garlic Spaghetti Squash. Basically, I haven't met a spaghetti squash recipe I didn't like.
The other day, I shared with you a delicious 30 Minute One-Pan Lasagna recipe that is quickly becoming a household favorite. It requires very little cooking skills and takes about 1/4 the time as your traditional lasagna. That's not my only lasagna alternative though, another favorite of mine is Spaghetti Squash Lasagna Bowls. This recipe replaces traditional lasagna noodles with spaghetti squash to create the perfect healthy, low-carb alternative to everyone's favorite Italian dish.
What is spaghetti squash?
Spaghetti squash is a delicious squash that when cooked, the insides create ribbons or strands that resemble spaghetti. It can be cooked in a variety of ways including baking, boiling, steaming, and even microwaving. It is often used as a substitute for pasta.
Is spaghetti squash keto friendly?
Spaghetti squash is very low carb, but like many foods, it is not totally carb-free. 1/2 cup of spaghetti squash contains roughly 20 calories and 5 g of carbs. So while it fits in the keto diet, you still need to watch your portion size!
The bowls or boats are easy to put together. You don't have to spend all of that time layering the noodles because...well... there are no noodles! You also won't have a ton of dishes to wash afterward, which is a huge bonus in my book.
To make this recipe even more simple, I often use a store bought spaghetti sauce, rather than make homemade. I start off with a jar of my favorite sauce and add in some parmesan cheese and Italian herbs to jack up the flavor a bit. Always, always, always doctor up your jarred sauces! Doing so makes the sauce ten times better.
This recipe is super simple, especially if you're familiar with roasting spaghetti squash. Just roast a medium-sized spaghetti squash in the oven. Once it has cooled enough to handle, scrape out the "spaghetti". You'll then mix all of your ingredients in with the spaghetti, top with shredded cheese and herbs and toss it until the broiler until the cheese gets nice and gooey.
Serves 4
Ingredients:
1 medium-size spaghetti squash 1 tbsp olive oil + 1 tbsp olive oil (separated) 1 pound ground beef (or ground turkey) 1 small onion, diced 1 jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce 1 cup of ricotta cheese 1 tbsp basil, chopped 1 cup shredded mozzarella
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Slice the squash in half lengthwise (from stem to tip). Remove seeds. Drizzle the inside of the squash with olive oil. Salt and pepper to taste. Turn flesh side down and roast in the oven for 45 minutes.
Tip: Save the squash cavity to use as a serving bowl!
2. Meanwhile, cook the ground beef and onion. Once the meat is fully cooked, add spaghetti sauce to the pan and allow to simmer over medium-high heat while the squash cools.
3. Once the squash is cool enough to handle, use a fork to scrape the spaghetti flesh creating "noodles". Add the noddles to the sauce. Stir until well incorporated.
4. In a small bowl, combine ricotta cheese and basil.
5. Return half the sauce and noodle mixture to the squash cavities. Add half of the riccotta mixture to each of the squash boats. Top with the remaining sauce and noodles OR mix the sauce, noodles and ricotta all together and place back into the squash. Sprinkle with cheese.
6. Broil in the oven until the cheese has melted and turned a beautiful golden brown- about 2 to 3 minutes.
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Updated: 3/24/2019