Spaghetti squash lasagna

It's Family day weekend here in Canada - time to spend it family! Well it wasn't always a holiday, maybe only in the past 15 years or so. Perhaps it's an excuse to take a day off between the Xmas/New year and Easter drag. We decided to stay in for dinner on Sunday night, and I was going through my pantry trying to find something that's dinner-worthy, and there you have it, spaghetti squash!

First off, the end result, beautiful isn't it? It's warm, cheesy, nutty, tomato-y, and light. It's a great dish to have for a winter day - if you crave pasta and want to find a alternative, healthier version. And makes your house smell great too.

I discovered spaghetti squash only a few short months ago - when I began to explore vegan food options, ya know: better for the environment and less animal cruelty and etc. Well it's not a pasta, but spaghetti squash is fun and stringy, and probably not so mushy if I hadn't over cooked it the last time. This time I'm determined to make something delicious out of my squash.

My inspiration is from here and ofcourse I made a bunch of modification - because I don't have all the ingredients they called for and this should be a dish versatile enough for a little creativity. http://www.eatingwell.com/recipe/261796/vegetarian-spaghetti-squash-lasagna/

As recommended on the recipe, I baked my raw squash at 400F for 40 min, cut side down. Took a fork and hollowed out the threads of squash. I sprinkled some Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper in with the squash and mixed it in a bowl. So far so good.

While my squash was baking, I took a can of diced tomato, a handful of basil, several cloves of garlic, and a couple stalks of green onion and put that on a simmer. The original recipe recommended mushroom but unfortunately that I didn't have - so a mushroom bouillon cube was thrown in instead. I also had some spinach in the fridge so I washed a handful of that and chopped it to be part of the layers. Also I didn't have the cheeses like in the recipe, but I had yellow cheddar instead. Well that's good enough - yellow shredded cheddar works just fine.

Since the squash shells are emptied out, it's a natural bowl for my squash lasagna. Here goes the layers: 1) squash Parmesan mix 2) tomato spinach sauce 3) cheddar shreds  - repeat until we're at the top. Just make sure you've got cheddar as your last layer. 450F bake for 15 min. broil is not even needed, the cheeses get pretty browned when baking at this temperature.

Another item i decided to add were pine nuts. Nuts are a great friend when you want to try vegetarian or vegan dishes. They give a crunch, and adds lots of nutrition into your meal. I had some pine nuts on hand and while my final bake was happening - pine nuts dry roasting on the cook pan with a bit of garlic powder and a bit of oregano flakes - there we have some toppings.

Well, the squash is ready, sprinkle the nuts on top, let it cool for another 5 min - and it's ready to be eaten. A nice dish doesn't just need to taste good but it's got to look pleasing to the eye. This dish is a beautiful presentation: with yellow and red and green colors all over. It smells great, hello garlic and baked cheese is just magic. And yes it also tasted amazing.

One thing i'd make a modification for next time, though I haven't figured out what alternative I'd use because it's just so gorgeous the way it is right now. Unlike the stuff peppers, the squash shells are not exactly edible. So when you are eating it, this dish is a bit of a mess. You would need to hollow the thing out as you eat it, not so much the cut-and-serve type. So perhaps a glass baking tin would have been better? If anyone comes across a good idea, I'd love to hear it.

Happy squashing!