Spaghetti Squash Ideas

A friend kndly gave me a couple of beautiful Spaghetti Squash the other day- and I was determined to do them justice.
If you've never cooked this intriguing vegetable, I do recommend it. Though they look ordinary from the outside, they are anything but.

Read on to see what I did with mine.

First of all, you need to roast the beast. You can try slicing it first- but I only achieved this by placing it in a woodworking vice and sawing it with a hacksaw!
It's easier to roast it whole in a hot oven for 40 minutes or so, until you can get a knife into it easily.

Roasted until ready to be sliced

Now observe the magic. Slice in half:

Slice in half and scrape out the seeds

Scrape out the seeds ( and save them for re-planting ) and then take a fork and scrape away at the flesh. It will come away in spaghetti-like fronds:

Pull away the 'spaghetti' with a fork

You then have the basis of many different dishes- I chose first a Bolognaise Gratin.

Butter a gratin dish and mix your squash with a Bolognaise Ragout ( you don't need me to tell you how to make a Bol sauce, I'm sure)

Squash and Bolognaise Sauce

Sprinkle the top with grated cheese:

Sprinkle with grated cheese and bake

Bake at 170 degrees until brown and bubbling.

Squash Bolognaise Gratin

The leftovers went well in my Use-it-up Minestrone Soup- with the addition of some more tomato stock, some peas, green onions and orzo pasta.

Add onions, peas, pasta and tomato stock for a
Minestrone Soup

Or fry with some beaten eggs, tomato and cheese for a Bol Frittata:

Squash Bol Frittata

Next bowl of 'spaghetti' went into a Veggie Pad Thai:

Ingredients:

half a spaghetti squash - pulled into fronds

1 egg

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 block of egg noodles

3 spring onions

1 tbsp crunchy veg eg. radishes, peppers, baby corn

Pad Thai sauce- made from 3 tbsp peanut butter, 1 finely sliced chilli, 1 tbsp lime juice, 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp mirin ( or sherry )

Chopped cashew nuts for garnish

1. Cook the noodles and drain

2. Stir fry the spring onions and other veg (including the squash) in a wok

Stir fry the veg quickly

3. Mix the egg with the soy sauce 

Whisk the egg and soy sauce in a cup

4. Pour in the egg mixture and cook quickly together with the veg

Add the egg mixture and cook

5. Add the noodles and the Pad Thai sauce

Add the noodles and sauce

6. Wok cook quickly, and serve with chopped cashew nuts on top

Squash Pad Thai

The leftovers made a yummy noodle salad the next day:

Noodle salad

So, we've been to Italy with our Spag Bol Squash, and Thailand with our Pad Thai. Time for a quick trip to India to make Spaghetti Squash Bhajias.

Mix 3 tbsp spaghetti squash fronds with 1 chopped onion, 2 tsp turmeric, a tsp salt and 1 tbsp garam masala ( or curry powder ):

Mix up onion rings, squash and spices

Add 1 tbsp of gram or rice flour ( or plain flour if that's what you have in the store cupboard):

Mix in a tablespoon of flour

Add enough water to make a soft dough:

Dough ready for shaping

Shape into walnut-sized balls:

Dough shaped and ready for frying

Fry in hot oil  ( or you can bake them in the oven for a healthier version) until brown all over:

Fry ( or bake) in hot oil

Serve to accompany your curry, salad or dhal:

Spaghetti Squash Bhajias

Oh..and remember those seeds I scraped out at the beginning? I've washed them, dried them and will be planting them as soon as I can, so as I can grow my own lovely Spaghetti Squash.

'Spaghetti' Seeds for planting

I'll let you know how they do.