This Twice Baked Spaghetti Squash has a rich, homemade turkey sauce all smothered with melted mozzarella cheese! Healthy, hearty and easy!
I have a bad habit of picking up squash at the Farmer’s Market and then letting them languish on the counter for months. I exaggerate not.
When my husband and I were working in Cleveland, I bought a butternut squash with lavish plans of soup, and this poor squash sat around for 8 months. Eight months! It became the running joke. Who does that?
Several months ago, I picked up a Delicata Squash because I thought it looked pretty, but I had no idea what to do with it.
And when I finally had to give up on the Delicata Squash, I picked up some (yes, some!) spaghetti squash because apparently, I learned nothing from my previous wasteful experiences.
But fortunately, Martha roasted spaghetti squash on Martha’s Cooking School, and I decided to tackle it. And that very same week, Tieghan from Half Baked Harvest, she’s amazing, by the way, posted a Roasted Garlic Spaghetti Squash Lasagna Boats, and I was sold.
This Twice Baked Spaghetti Squash is a guilt-free way to eat two of my favorite things: red meat sauce [more on that unnatural obsession here] and cheese.
Mmmmm, the melty, cheesy goodness.
And spaghetti squash is shockingly good! Seasoned simply with olive oil, salt, pepper, and freshly ground nutmeg, it had a nutty, comforting flavor that I found myself eating even without the accouterments. And it only has 31 calories in a cup. Who can argue with that?
That means more dessert. No?
When my husband was out of town last month, I ate this every single night for a week. Every. Single. Night.
So without further delay, pick up some spaghetti squash and whip up these healthy, delicious Twice Baked Spaghetti Squash.
FULL DISCLOSURE: There is another Butternut squash sitting on my counter that I picked up several weeks ago with a determination to make that butternut squash soup finally. Maybe divulging my problem will force me actually to MAKE IT! Here’s to hoping!
Twice Baked Spaghetti Squash
Ingredients
- 2 medium spaghetti squash
- ¾ pound mild turkey sausage
- 2 cups pasta sauce
- 8 oz fresh mozzarella cheese (grated [this makes a HUGE difference in overall flavor, but you can also use the pre-grated type in a pinch])
- Freshly cracked pepper
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper (this will save your baking sheets and also you a lot of cleanup!)
- Halve your spaghetti squash, scoop out the insides, and place them face up on your baking sheet; drizzle with olive oil and coarse kosher salt. Flip them over and drizzle with more olive oil and salt. Be sure to set aside the insides of the squash to roast the seeds!
- Bake in your preheated oven until the skin easily gives when you poke it with a fork. It will feel soft and will indent. This baking time will vary drastically by the size of your squash; 30-60 minutes.
- While the squash bakes prepare your filling. Brown some mild, turkey sausage and combine with pasta sauce. Heat gently in a medium saucepan.
- Grip the squash with tongs and scrape out the insides with fork into a medium bowl.
- Repeat with all remaining squash halves.
- Season generously with olive oil, kosher salt, fresh ground pepper and fresh ground nutmeg (leave this out if you only have the pre-ground type…it’s just not the same). I like to season the squash in batches; fluffing with a fork to toss and coat.
- Fill the empty squash skins or ovenproof dish with the spaghetti squash; top with ¼ of the turkey sausage pasta sauce; and then sprinkle grated mozzarella over the top.
- Broil until cheese melts and browns. Serve immediately.
Notes
I am going to make this tomorrow.
For your Butternut Squash. The Half Baked Harvest has an AMAZING recipe for Butternut Squash Rigatoni Pie. I will admit that I thought standing the rigatoni upright and pouring the sauce into the noodles was a bit much so I just poured the sauce over the pasta and baked. the only think I will add next time is some spicy Italian Sausage to the sauce. But it is well worth using your butternut squash on the recipe.
Made this for dinner last week. Husband and I both loved it and are having it again tonight!
I'm so glad you tried and loved it, Jess!!! Don't tell anyone but I ate it every night for 3 weeks straight (my husband was out of town so I could get away with such things! haha)
I am going to try this as well, we love spaghetti squash, a great substitute for the carbs in pasta and one of the few things that works well with Kendall's diabeties! xoxo
Can this be prepared ahead of time.
Absolutely, Joyce!
I fixed this for dinner tonight - it was awesome!! Will definitely fix this again!!
I'm so glad you liked it Brenda!!!
I was wondering if I could use Goat Cheese instead of Mozerella....would it taste weird? I'm just craving me some goat cheese and spaghetti squash! Haha. These look amazing!! 😀
That is not weird, Brittany! I LOVE goats cheese! I think it would taste good! Be sure to report back!
Hey this looks amazing! I've made spaghetti squash before but I really love this idea here. Thanks for the recipe!
Thanks, Jo! You're welcome. It was a great way to eat my veggies! I hope you try it!
Ok, you totally win the award for hanging onto a squash the longest! I love that story! You know, I never think of making squash when I go to the store, but I do love it when I buy it! Thank you for inspiring (and reminding me!!!) of a really great vegetable. This looks delish!
Lol! I'm not sure that's an award I should be proud of or not! I hope you do pick up a spaghetti squash or two! It's a really nice change from the usual pasta.
LOL! I have a spaghetti squash that's been sitting in my pantry forever. I don't even remember why I bought it. This baked spaghetti squash looks amazing! I may finaaly get that squash out of my pantry and onto a plate 🙂
I am SO relieved that I am not the only one! You should roast it! Once you do it you are going to be hooked. It was so easy. No pealing, no chopping, no hassle.
Dang! Eight months lol. Wow!
Love the globs of cheese in this dish. Love extra cheesiness. And speaking of squash, I am sipping on some squash tea as I type this. Instant....it's actually so much yummier when I make my own with fresh squash, but I don't have any squash at the moment. Maybe you can use some of your squash for squash tea too?
It gets worse...the only reason it was thrown out at 8 months is because we moved. Bad.
How do you make fresh squash tea? Do you just throw some squash chunks in a pot and add hot water? Do you cook it first?
Oh I need to try this recipe! I tried spaghetti squash once b/c I heard it was healthy and low carb. I roasted it at home but the stringy squash just tasted strange to me. Granted, I didn't think of using pasta sauce/sausage/cheese but the squash just tasted weirdly crunchy.
Can you describe what the squash strands are supposed to taste like if roasted properly? Perhaps I didn't roast them long enough last time.
Hey Faye! You do need to try it! Anything smothered in melted mozzarella has to be good!
Roasted spaghetti squash definitely shouldn't be crunchy. I would make sure you buy young squash that feel heavy for their size. Roast until a fork can easily be pressed into the skin. When in doubt, roast a little longer. It has a mild, nutty flavor. No one is going to be fooled into thinking spaghetti squash IS spaghetti pasta, but it mimics the texture well enough serve as a vegetable substitute! Let me know if you try it again!
what is the nutritional info for this recipe?
Hi Catherine, Thanks for your question but I don't have time to provide nutritional information for my recipes. Please feel free to plug the ingredients into an online calculator. I usually use this one.