Ingredients
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2 pounds Spaghetti Squashhalved, with seeds removed
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2 tbs Extra Virgin Olive Oil
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1 pound Chicken Italian Sausagecasings removed
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1 Sweet Red Bell Pepperdiced
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24 oz Marinara Sauce
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3 tbs Capersdrained
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1/4 cup Pimiento-stuffed Green Oliveschopped
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1/4 tsp Fresh Ground Pepper
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1/4 tsp Kosher Salt
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1 cup Medium Cheddar Cheese
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1/2 cup Mozzarella Cheese
Directions
This Spaghetti Squash Puttanesca Bake doesn’t take much effort. Sure, it takes time to roast the squash, and again to bake everything together, but at least it doesn’t require much brain power, since mine is feeling a little zapped.
I have a love/hate relationship with spaghetti squash. I love the idea of it — replacing pasta with a vegetable that sure looks and behaves a lot like traditional pasta. However, the texture is different, and it’s taken me a little while to get used to it. Adding a puttanesca sauce (a slightly salty and zingy tomato sauce) makes up for the spaghetti squash’s noticeable lack of carbs by being just flavorful enough to make you forget you’re not eating pasta.
It’s pasta without the guilt…while I’m working on life balance, without the guilt.
Recipe Steps
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1
Done
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Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place the spaghetti squash halves on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until it can be pierced with a fork. Set aside until it’s cool enough to handle. |
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2
Done
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Reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees F. |
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3
Done
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Meanwhile, add the olive oil to a large skillet on medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook, breaking it up. When it’s nearly cooked through, add the bell pepper and cook until the peppers have softened. |
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4
Done
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Add the pasta sauce, capers, olives, salt and pepper and stir to combine. |
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5
Done
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When the squash is cool enough to handle, shred the flesh with a fork, creating spaghetti-like strands, and add them into a 13″x9″ casserole dish. Discard the squash skins. Pour the sauce over the spaghetti squash and mix it together until it’s totally combined. |
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6
Done
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Sprinkle with the cheddar and mozzarella cheeses. |
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7
Done
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Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until bubbling and the cheese has browned slightly. |
2 Reader Questions and Reviews Hide Comments
OMG this recipe is deliccious! I made this last night with my sister and we fell in LOVE with spaghetti squash! We added some spice to the sauce and it was marvelous. The spaghetti squash was naturally sweet and the spiciness just brought it to a whole ‘nother level! We will definitely be adding this recipe to our dinner recipe rotation 🙂 Thanks a ton for introducing us to spaghetti squash!
We usually just add onions, shrimp and an olive oil/garlic sauce to our spaghetti squash, but that has gotten a little boring. I’ll definitely give this a try soon as I haven’t really used spaghetti squash in a casserole before.