Low Carb Spaghetti Squash Tomato Toss…

By doran65

What a delicious alternative to spaghetti. You don’t even have to be a vegetable lover to really enjoy this dish. Spaghetti squash is a bright yellow, football shaped vegetable with pale yellow, stringy flesh, that resembles spaghetti when cooked. It has a slightly sweet flavor. We’re topping it with a yummy tomato sauce. Works perfect as a vegetarian main course or as a side dish.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Bake Time: 1 hour and 15 minutes-for the spaghetti squash

Ingredients

• 1 - (3 lb) spaghetti squash (approx.)
• 1 1/2 1½ cups onions, chopped
• 1 1/2 1½ tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 5 medium tomatoes, chopped
• 3 medium zucchini, sliced into ¼- inch pieces
• 1/4 ¼ cup fresh snipped basil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3/4 ¾ teaspoon salt
• 1/4 ¼ teaspoon fresh ground pepper
• 1/4 ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese, optional

Details

Adapted from skinnykitchen.com

Preparation

Step 1

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking pan with foil.

2. Using the tip of a sharp knife, pierce the squash in several places. Place on baking pan and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes until tender.

3. Meanwhile, in a large pan, cook the onions in olive oil until tender. Add the tomatoes, zucchini, basil, garlic, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, turn the heat down to a simmer, cover and cook for 3 minutes. Uncover and cook for about 6-8 minutes, stirring often, or until the zucchini is crisp-tender. Keep warm.

4. Remove the squash from the oven and carefully slice in half. Remove the seeds and discard. Use a fork to shred the squash into long strands in a bowl.

5. To serve, Place the spaghetti squash on a serving platter or individual plates. Pour the sauce over the squash. Garnish with parmesan cheese, if desired.

Makes 6 main course servings

Food Fact
Spaghetti squash, also called vegetable spaghetti, is so named because of its flesh, which when cooked, separates into yellow-gold spaghetti-like strands. They’re available year round with the peak season from fall though winter. Spaghetti squash originated in Mexico.


Healthy Benefit
Spaghetti squash is a healthy alternative to pasta. It is praised for containing few calories, no fat or sodium. It’s low in carbohydrates and high in fiber. It makes a wonderful choice if you’re on a low carb diet. Topped with tomato sauce boosts the levels of vitamin C.

Shopping Tip
Choose spaghetti squash that are hard and smooth with an even pale yellow color. Avoid greenish squash which is still immature or those with bruised or damaged spots. Store un-cut spaghetti squash for up to 3 weeks at room temperature.

Prep Tip
It’s easier to shred the spaghetti squash if you use an oven mitt or dish towel to hold the halved squash at an angle. Use a fork to rake the stringy pulp from the warm shell into a bowl.

Weight Watchers POINTS value 1

SKINNY FACTS: for one serving
72 calories, 3.8g fat, 2g protein, 9g carbs, 3g fiber, 302mg sodium, 6g sugar