blog recipe #2 of 365

Recipe number 2!
Had a great time experimenting with this one!!  As you will get to know, I love to experiment with different herbs and spices.  There is no rhyme or reason other then smell to what I use and how much.  So if your reading my blog, and wondering what am I thinking using that spice........I probably have no idea hahaha 8) But in the end, I will let you know if it tastes good or not!!
So tonight I decided on spaghetti, one of my favs.  The sauce is a traditional homeade sauce, but the noodles are not!  Tonight we are using spaghetti squash! less on the proccessed carbs and more of the good carbs!!

No noodles spaghetti

1 can of tomato paste

2 cups of vegetable broth

2 Tbsp of basil

½ medium red onion (sliced)

2 cloves of garlic (chopped)

2 sticks of celery (chopped)

1 cup of mushrooms

½ cup of yellow pepper

2 roma tomatoes

1 cup spinach

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tsp ground mustard

1 Tsp chili powder

1 Tsp turmeric

Pepper to taste

1 spaghetti squash

Spaghetti squash is a good alternative to pasta. The cooked squash flesh shreds into threads like thin spaghetti noodles, so we will be using it for our “no noodle spaghetti”.

Pre heat the oven to 375 ͦF.  Line a bake sheet with aluminum foil, add water to bake sheet half up the rim.  Cut the squash in half, place open sides down into water.  Bake in oven 45 mins to 1 hour, or until insides are soft but not mush.

Meanwhile, put tomato paste, basil, and vegetable broth in a medium size pot.  Turn on to low heat to simmer.

In a pan, sauté onion in olive oil until soft 2-3 mins, add garlic until fragrant 2-3mins.  Add to tomato sauce.

In the same pan, add the mushrooms and celery, sauté for 5 mins, add to the sauce along with the peppers, tomatoes, spinach and spices.  Turn heat up to medium, let cook stirring occasionally.

When spaghetti squash is done, scoop out the seeds and fibrous strings from the center.  Then gently scrape the tines of a kitchen fork around the edge of the spaghetti squash to shred the pulp into strands.

By this point, your sauce should be ready.  You can leave the sauce chunky, or if you have picky kids like I do feel free to hand blend the sauce smooth. 

Serve the squash as noodle on your plate, and add the sauce on top. 

Feel free to sprinkle fresh parmesan on top to add a little extra.

If you want to add a protein boost, feel free to add pinto beans or extra lean ground meat of choice.

This recipe can be vegan, dairy free, and is gluten free!

Hope you enjoy as much as I did 8)

Happy cooking friends!

This is the sauce simmering!

 This is the finished product! I choose to puree my sauce 8)