Mediterranean Spaghetti Sqash
I've had no time to go to the store recently, so dinners have really been a good exercise in using my imagination with ingredients I have on hand. This week I remembered that I'd bought a spaghetti squash awhile ago, and finally decided it was time to make it.
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I pierced the squash with a fork, then put it in the microwave for about 15 minutes, turning it periodically. After it was done, I let it sit for a good 10 minutes to cool down - it gets very hot! When it's cool enough to handle, you just cut it in half, take out the seeds, and use a fork to pull out strands of the squash.
The "sauce" just kind of came to me. I started with the onions - normally I'd chop up a big yellow or white onion, but since I had neither I went with what I did have - shallots and red pearl onions. This ended up probably being even better in the end because they are both sweeter and milder than the big onions.
So I started the sauce by sauteing the onions in olive oil. Then I added a few cloves of minced garlic and one big, diced tomato. I simmered that for a few minutes, then added some canned, quartered artichokes, diced kalamata olives, and oregeno and basil. I finished it up with a bit of salt and pepper, then piled it onto the spaghetti squash.
This turned out SO good. I think I could easily make and eat this every week. Delicious!

Comments
It looks and sounds delicious. I make spaghetti squash several times a year, but always serve it with spaghetti sauce. Maybe your dish will help me to be more creative next time.
cas
Posted by: cassie-b | January 9, 2007 08:24 AM
Better than pasta, hands down. My new favorite dish!
-Chiara
Posted by: Chiara | September 27, 2007 01:49 AM
Lauren, you "pierced the squash with a fork and put it in the microwave for 15 minutes"? Really? I ask because I tried making this squash for the first time. I couldn't get a fork to go through it...so I made some slits with a knife. After 7 minutes, the damn thing exploded all over my microwave.
Posted by: LDV | October 18, 2007 08:12 PM
I'm sorry, but what is a spaghetti squash? An amount of spaghetti leftover from an earlier meal? Or a kind of pumpkin?
Posted by: Dick | January 31, 2008 09:37 AM