Spaghetti is one dish that my husband loves, and I routinely make it for him, having pasta night about once a week or so. I’ve gotten my regular spaghetti sauce recipe down to a science, but sometimes I crave something a bit different.
And this BLT spaghetti hits the spot!
For awhile we went completely grain-free (primal/paleo-ish) and definitely missed eating homemade spaghetti. But when even gluten-free noodles are out of the question, it gets pretty hard to make. Until I found spaghetti squash! It takes just a bit more time to make, simply because the squash takes longer to cook than a box of pasta, but you can easily pop it in the oven or a pot of water and walk away for a while.
The sauce is easy to make using fresh ingredients and the bacon gives it wonderful flavor. I actually prefer the flavor of the spaghetti squash with this sauce (instead of regular pasta), and as an added benefit, I get some varied nutrition into my family.
My husband doesn’t love this recipe as much as I do, so I only make it every few months. For me it’s a pleasant variation from our normal. Todd on the other hand despises change!
And don’t forget to add the greens! As you can see from my photo, I forgot to buy them when I made it that time around.
- 1 whole spaghetti squash
- 1 lb Nitrate free bacon
- approx 4 c. cherry tomatoes, chopped
- 1 small onion
- 3-4 cloves garlic
- 2 shakes red pepper flakes
- 1 c. homemade broth (or water if you don't have it)
- 3-4 c. arugula
- ½ c. chopped fresh basil
- grated Parmesan to taste
- Roast tomatoes for about 20 minutes or until lightly browned in a 300 degree oven. At the same time, cook spaghetti squash (boil whole for 25 minutes, bake whole for 50-60minutes) Fry bacon and set aside.
- Chop onion and mince garlic. Saute onion in 2 Tbsp butter or oil for 3-4 minutes, until soft. Add minced garlic and saute for an extra 2 minutes.
- Add in tomatoes, pepper flakes, and broth.
- Add in basil and arugula (you can use another green if you have it on hand, the flavor will just be a bit different). Break bacon into small pieces and add as well.
- Slice spaghetti squash in half and scoop out the seeds.
- Using a fork, scrape out the ‘meat’ of the squash. It shreds just like spaghetti noodles!
- Top with tomato and bacon sauce. And freshly grated Parmesan Cheese.
*For those not sensitive to wheat you can easily prepare this for over any type of regular wheat pasta!
Donielle Baker
This looks great! I don’t think I’ve tried spaghetti squash before. I’m finding I really like pasta sauces over grilled or sauteed zucchini slices. You can peel zucchini into ribbons too to make it look/feel like pasta.
What a delicious looking meal! Your photos are great, too. 🙂
I linked up a new frozen treat. Light, refreshing, and healthy; it can be made as a slushie-type beverage or a spoonable frozen dessert.
Shirley
Looks yummy! Must try it sometime.
I love spaghetti squash! Unfortunately my husband does not like it. At all.
Today I linked up fajitas because you can just serve on a bed of lettuce instead of in a tortilla shell. When I go low carb I always just use lettuce in lieu of bread products. Works great as a wrap or “bun” too.
This looks great! I haven’t been able to find any spaghetti squash yet this year. I think it’ll be more in season fall/winter. I will definitely be making this then!
Thanks!
This looks fantastic! It has been a while since I picked up a spaghetti squash – and I need to soon, so I can make this!
AMAZING. I can’t wait to make this. It’s on the LIST!
Just wanted to let you know that I tried this recipe and LOVED it. Absolutely scrumptious. It was my first experience with spaghetti squash, and thanks to this recipe, will not be my last!! Mmm-mm-mm. (I think the secret is in the bacon. What doesn’t taste amazing when it has bacon??)
okay, YUM. This is definitely going on the menu this week.
Okay, so I went shopping earlier and got the ingredients to make this this week, but I didn’t see any arugula. Is there a good substitute for that? I thought about getting kale, but it seems like I’d probably have to steam that for a bit before adding it in, and the lazy part of me didn’t want to do that. And spinach and chard didn’t sound like they would be good substitutes either. Any suggestions?
@Kelsey, I think pretty much any green will work since arugula is just baby spinach. 🙂 You could use kale too – just cover the pot for a few minutes after you add it in to help steam it down faster.
mmm… UPDATE: Just made this for dinner (substituted kale for arugula) – it was DELICIOUS. Will definitely make again!
YAY! Glad you liked it – thanks for letting me know. 🙂
Love the sound of this, I’m going to try it tonight! I just wanted to make a minor correction. Although you can sub baby spinach for arugula it isn’t the same green. Arugula has a spicy kind of pungent flavor (that I LOVE) that spinach lacks (but I enjoy spinach too!). Thanks for all the yummy recipes – the sweet potato baked oatmeal is scrumptious!
@Marnie, heh, I was going to say the same thing re: arugula and spinach. almost like we’re related or something. 😉
really looking forward to trying this recipe, thank you!
🙂 We are going to try making this tonight!
We have not taken wheat out of our diet yet..we’re just in the process of trying to eat healthier and eat whole foods. This looked like a great recipe and ..I have never cooked squash before, excited for the adventure!
@Amy Schultz,
We tried the recipe!
My squash kind of exploded…lol, but it still worked okay. My sauce was a bit watery, but overall it tasted great. May try baking the squash next time. 🙂