Spaghetti Squash!

Okay so I am posting this here because I have seen a lot of people saying they miss pasta and I just wanted to offer up a solution I discovered when I was on the South Beach diet and couldn't have carbs yet!

Spaghetti squash is super low-cal, easy to make, and when prepared resembles spaghetti incredibly! Lots of recipes are out there for it, and it's pretty tasty. I like to mix it up with some sauce and cover with cheese and bake it like a sort of lasagna. Here's another great recipe I found:

http://recipes.howstuffworks.com/spaghetti-sq uash-primavera-recipe.htm

A ton of food, and it's only 116 calories per serving! Yum!

Hey thanks!!! Great idea.  I think I'll get some on my next trip to the market.  I'm not teribly concerened about the carbs (I do limit a little bit) but I love speghetti.  I wonder if you could make a sort of garlic noodle dish out of them (that's my kids favorite).  Worth a shot for sure!!

Well I love any kind of squash.  It just makes it that much better to have it double as something else!  I want to be adventureous and try all kinds of different kinds of squash.  *sigh*  I just like loads of butter on it. :*(

Ok, I bought some spaghetti squash last night.  Think I'll have it for dinner tonight.  My kids are looking at me like I'm nuts but *shrug*  gotta try something new! Let you know how it goes.

Nice! Let us know how you prepare it, how your kids like it, and how you like it!!! :-)

I like mine with tossed with garlic infused olive oil (just a touch) and lots of grated cheese and a sprinkle of fresh chopped herbs. 

I've never liked it with tomato sauce.  The nice taste of the squash is overwhelmed and canceled out by the tomato.  So I keep it simple.

Do they sell spaghetti squash at a regular grocery store?

Yup!  I got mine last night at Pathmark.  I've also seen it in Shop-Rite, Weiss, Acme, Genuardis, most grocery stores in fact :-)     You can also try looking at a farmers market / produce junction type place, they usually will have really nice ones super cheap!

I got a couple from Wal-Mart Super Center last night.  Also have them at HEB.  I can't wait to try it tonight. :-)  I hope it turns out.

That looks really good. I think I'll try that. I'm always craving pasta !

Ok, I'm going to have the spaghetti squash tonight.  Last night I was suprised with a special dinner so it was put on hold.  I'll let you all know Monday

i like to cook mine, put some stiry fry veggies on it with soy sauce and a chicken breast.

Where do you find this at?  I mean is it by the pasta or veggies at the supermarket?  Confused - scratches head - does it look like regular spaghetti?

It is in the veggies.  It is an actual vegetable.  It is a light tannish almost oval looking squash.  After you cook it is resembles actual sphaghetti though the texture is a little different, but you can slurp it like a regular noodle. :-)  I really enjoyed what I made.  I need a little more practice at it, but even the kids ate it.  They said they think they'll like it better the next time I make it because they will know what to expect lol

Ok I just found out that the spaghettie squash wasn't supposed to be a little crisp at all?  Is this true?  Maybe I didn't cook it long enough.  I was told to pierce the flesh and cook it whole for a long while which is what I did, until you could dent the flesh.  Next time I may try cutting it in half?  Maybe I'll make garlic noodles tonight and see how it works.

It has a slight crunch to it.  Don't expect it to be the same as real pasta because it's a vegetable.  It has the sweet taste of squash, which is why I don't like it with tomato sauce.  I don't use it as a substitute for pasta, but as a vegetable in it's own right.  It's rich in vitamin A.

How do I cook the squash part?

About.com shows you how!  With illustrations...

How to Prepare Spaghetti Squash

I found their method of baking to produce a very nice, tasty result.  The dry heat brings out the flavor and texture of the squash.

i LOVE spaghetti squash, it has a really mild flavor so it's great with a lot of the things you'd put on pasta...

BUT i don't think i can be considered pasta like! it might look a little spaghettish, but it does not have the texture or flavor of pasta. if you eat it expecting it to taste like pasta you'll be very disappointed.

So I bought one yesterady and was planning on making it for dinner tonight.  I was going to cook it and then add some sauce and a little bit of cheese, but now that people are saying its sweet like squash I'm debating.  Maybe I should make it and add in something else besides sauce.  What else do you guys add to it? Or do you just eat it plain with some spices?

Minie, try just tossing it with about a teaspoon to a tablespoon, per person, of olive oil, a dash of salt & pepper and a generous amount of grated parmesan or romano cheese.  You can infuse the olive oil with garlic if you heat it gently with slices of garlic in it.  Don't scorch the garlic! 

I also like it with butter and nutmeg, very plain.  Those Butter Buds or Molly McButter work pretty good for butter flavor, but I like just a touch of the real thing. 

Go ahead and try some with tomato sauce!  A lot of people really love it.