Squash This

Once again, I would like to apologize for the long interval between posts. I plead work. And a social life...yep, I have one again. But back to food..It seems like every day after work I have to stop at the market to pick up something for the next day. The other day, as I was wandering through the produce department, I saw a woman with a spaghetti squash in her cart. It immediately made me crave a meat free dinner. Unfortunately, I only had enough money to get my work provisions, so I went back the next day and picked up two spaghetti squash. I usually make a more Italian type sauce, but I decided to go a little crazy and make something different.

So, I cut the squash in half, lengthwise (no easy feat), and scraped out the seeds. Then, I put them face down on a cookie sheet that I had sprayed with some olive oil spray. I roasted them in a 350 oven for about an hour, until they were very soft. Once they cooled enough to handle, I took a fork and scraped all of the flesh from inside the skin. For those of you who have never used spaghetti squash, well, it's called that because as you scrape the fork down the inside, the flesh comes out looking like pasta. I put that aside in a bowl.

The next step was to heat a saute pan, add some olive oil and fresh chopped garlic. I shook that around a bit until the garlic was softened, then added a can of Rotel tomatoes. These are diced tomatoes that are mixed with chili peppers and spices. I added the squash, a little vegetable broth, and some salt and pepper. Just tossed until everything was hot. Into a bowl it went, and then I garnished it with grated Smoked Gouda cheese. I had gone on a search for Manchego cheese, but unfortunately, when I found it, it was 26 bucks a pound, so I picked up the smoked cheese instead. I have to say, it made the dish!

I suppose you could add meat to this concoction if you wanted, but honestly, it was a tasty and filling vegetarian dinner. The squash is low carb, high in vitamin A and potassium, AND, only has 42 calories a cup! You can even roast the seeds and use them as a garnish, or a snack later.

Enjoy your dinner. Spring is coming, and my tastebuds will be waking up to the new flavors of the season. The posts will come fast and furious then...