Spaghetti Squash with Avocado and Asiago

 This recipe is the third in my month-long series of healthy, weeknight recipes from all around the web. This is stuff I make time and again, usually with some modifications, and still love! Check back (or follow this blog) to see all of the recipes I’ll be featuring this month!

Spaghetti Squash is quite possibly my favorite food, and this recipe is my current food obsession.

I already have a some favorite spaghetti squash recipes (Buffalo Chicken Spaghetti Squash, Pizza Spaghetti Squash, Spicy Sriracha and Turkey Spaghetti Squash) but I still found myself googling “spaghetti squash recipes” a couple of months ago. You can never have too much of your favorite food, right?!

I was intrigued – this recipe, from The Kitchn – looked so, so simple and had raving reviews. I had to try it. And I did. And we loved it. Even the leftovers for lunch the next day, with slightly browning avocado. Still loved it.

Of course, I made some modifications to the recipe, mostly by accident (I figured I had the gist of the recipe, and didn’t actually look at it when I was cooking. Ended up missing a few ingredients – opps!). We tried topping this with freshly grated asiago and freshly grated parmesan and the asiago was just slightly better. I found the cheese was salty enough, so I don’t add any salt or pepper to the recipe.

Squash is filling, so this makes a great vegetarian dinner. You can also serve this as a side to meat or fish (serve “Serve this with” section below recipe).

Spaghetti Squash with Avocado and Asiago

Ingredients

• 1 large spaghetti squash (mine are usually in the 4 lb. range)
• 2 Tbs olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 avocado, cut into cubes
• 1/4 c freshly grated asiago cheese, for topping (parmesan also works)

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 374° F.
2. While the oven is preheating but the spaghetti squash in half and place it face down on a baking sheet.
3. Bake the squash for 30 – 45 minutes. You don’t want to overcook the squash so start checking every 5 minutes or so once it reaches the 30 min mark. You want the cooked squash to separate in strands but still be fairly firm. It should not be at all mushy.
4. Towards the end of the baking time for the squash heat the olive oil over medium heat in a small skillet.
5. Add the minced garlic when the oil is warm. Cook, stirring constantly to prevent burning, until you see a couple pieces of garlic just start to turn tan in color. Remove from heat.
6. When the squash is done and has cooled down for a few minutes use a fork to scrape the strands out of the shell. Put the spaghetti squash in a bowl and stir in the garlic olive oil.
7. Serve with the asiago cheese and avocado.

Recipe Inspiration: The Kitchn

Serve This With:

• Crispy Parmesan Chicken
• Grilled Lemon Garlic Basil Tilapia

 

Buffalo Chicken Spaghetti Squash

A creamy, health-ified buffalo chicken mixture served on top of roasted spaghetti squash. A great, nutritious way to enjoy buffalo chicken for dinner!

For the past ten minutes I’ve been killing time on the internet, trying to figure out how to adequately express that this is just the best meal ever. I mean, I’m a food blogger, ideally everything I post should be perfect and delicious. Will anyone really believe me if I say this is the best food you’ll ever eat?

And then I thought I could convince you by telling you how often we eat Buffalo Chicken Spaghetti Squash (like, once a week) and how much time I spent trying to take photographs that would show just how mouthwatering it is (3 photoshoots).

I remembered that part of what is so great about this dinner (heck, I’d eat it for breakfast) is that it is healthy, guilt free, and made with good-for-you ingredients. Maybe that is the biggest selling point?!

As with any food though, flavor matters! Made with the best hot sauce ever, Frank’s Red Hot (or use whatever your favorite is, no hard feelings!) this is as spicy as any buffalo chicken flavored item out there, with a kick of ranch flavor. The creamy buffalo sauce will cover the chicken and spaghetti squash so each mouthful is full of buffalo taste. If you’ve been reading this blog much you know I’m not a huge fan of leftovers and repeat meals, but I ALWAYS want these leftovers the next day!

I hope by now you’re convinced that this may in fact be the best meal ever. Please, try it for yourself, and let me know!

Ingredients

• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, or 5 chicken tenderloins (this amount does not need to be exact. Also, feel free to skip step 3 and add any cooked cubed or shredded chicken you have on hand)
• 1 c plain greek yogurt
• 1/2 c Frank’s Red Hot Sauce (if using a wing sauce, increase to 2/3 c), or more/less to taste
• 2 T dry ranch seasoning (use a homemade version or make sure the variety you choose is GF)
• 1 c shredded cheddar cheese (and, honestly, this is delicious without cheese)
• 2 small spaghetti squashes
• sliced green onions, for garnish

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400° F.
2. While the oven is preheating cut the spaghetti squashes in half. I use a long serrated knife, start in the middle, and take my time working my way around the squash. Scoop the seeds out of the squash and discard. Place the squash halves cut side down on a baking sheet (I always put mine of a silpat mat) and bake for 30 – 50 minutes. Different size squashes need different cooking times. I always start checking mine for done-ness at the 30 min mark.
3. While the squash is cooking, trim any fat off of the chicken. Place it in a saucepan with water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium high and keep a low boil until the chicken is cooked through, about 10 – 15 minutes depending on the thickness of your chicken pieces. Remove the cooked chicken from the pan and let cool on a plate. Once it has cooled a bit, use two forks to shred it.
4. Add the greek yogurt and hot sauce to a small sauce pan. Heat over medium heat. When the greek yogurt has “melted” add the ranch seasoning and stir to combine. Stir in the shredded chicken  and remove from the heat.
5. When the spaghetti squash is cooked use a fork to scrap the “spaghetti” strands off the walls of the squash. Top each squash half (filled with the spaghetti squash strands) with 1/4 of the buffalo chicken mixture and sprinkle each with 1/4 c cheese.
6. Place the spaghetti squash back in the oven and cook for another 5 – 10 minutes, or until the cheese melts.
7. Garnish with sliced green onions and enjoy!

Serve this with

• I serve this as a complete meal. If you’re looking to add something to the meal, a salad, corn on the cob, or a roasted vegetable would be great choices!