Spaghetti Squash Puttanesca

What’s your favorite food?  Mine is, for sure, pasta.  Unfortunately, there’s a lot of good reasons not to eat pasta 3 meals a day (even though spaghetti makes an awesome breakfast). So, from time to time, I try to come up with ways to make dishes with the sorts of flavors I love in good pasta dishes, but with more vegetables and less carbs.  Spaghetti squash is not a perfect substitute; it’s definitely a vegetable and it tastes like one.  But the stringy texture is fun for mimicking spaghetti and the puttanesca topping is just as delicious over squash as it is on pasta.  We’re in the midst of spaghetti squash season from our CSA, so I’m making this as much as possible.  It also reheats well for a great lunch.

Spaghetti Squash Puttanesca

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Prep Time 15 mins

Cook Time 40 mins

Servings 6 servings

Ingredients

  

• 1 large spaghetti squash
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic crushed
• 28 ounce can diced tomatoes drained
• 1 cup olives I used a mix of kalamata and green with pimento, sliced
• 1 cup white beans
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes optional

Instructions

 

• Fill a large pot of water about 2/3 full of water (enough to cover your squash, but not overflow). Bring to a boil on the stove top.
• Slice the spaghetti squash down the middle and scoop out the seeds. When the water boils, add the squash halves and boil for 15-20 minutes, or until the squash is cooked and it's easy to insert a fork into the flesh. Remove from the boiling water and set aside to cool.
• In a medium sized skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the crushed garlic cloves and cook for about 30 seconds.
• Add the drained tomatoes and olives to the pan. Stir to combine and cook for 3 minutes.
• Add the white beans, lemon juice and red pepper flakes, if using. Stir to combine and cook until heated through.
• Use a fork to scrape the spaghetti squash strands out of the skins. Serve, either by placing a serving of squash in a bowl and adding some of the puttanesca topping (as shown) or by combining the squash with the sauce.
• Enjoy!