Spaghetti Squash

What is spaghetti squash?? It’s a great vegetable (squash) that is a great substitute for pasta. Here are the facts on this fabulous vegetable.

serving size is 1 cup

35 calories

1g protein

.5g fat

7g carb

1g fiber

15mg sodium and 108g of potassium

It is unlike any other summer squash in its texture. When it is cooked, the flesh seperates like long spaghetti-like strands. It is available all year long. The preparation and cooking is as follows: Be sure to rinse the skin and prick with a fork several times. You can cook it in a 350 deg oven until it is fork-tender, usually 45 minutes to 1 hour for 2 to 2 1/2 pounds. Or best is to cook in the microwave for approximately 25 minutes on high. Be careful not to overcook. You can stop the cooking immediately by cutting in half. If you overcook it, it becomes watery and loses its sweetness. Discard the seeds. With a fork “rake” out the strands. Yum!!

I used it to replace my pasta dinner last night. I used my usual marinara sauce (see previous posts under Pasta). I did replace 1 strip of bacon with 4 ounces of ground turkey. You could also use TVP (textured vegetable protein) in place of the turkey for variation. Give it a try you will love it.