From Our Own Kitchen -- Spaghetti Squash My Way

You know, sometimes you crave a certain food and want it a certain way, so you realize the best thing to do is make it yourself. That's how I was feeling when I made this dish for supper tonight. If you've never had spaghetti squash, you really owe it to yourself to give it a try -- unless you're one of those squash-phobic people that totally puzzle me. As the name implies, spaghetti squash resembles the famous pasta when it's cooked and is perfectly delicious served with a tomato-based or alfredo sauce just like "real" spaghetti.  We really love it like this, though -- simple to prepare and it allows the flavor of the veggie to shine through.

If you don't even know what to look for in the produce market, spaghetti squash looks like a small watermelon, but it's beautiful sunflower yellow and hard. Choose one with no obvious bruises and that has a fresh appearance. I start by turning the oven to 350F so it can preheat while I do the prep work. Next, rinse the squash off well, then slice it lengthwise, starting on one side of the stem and going around to the other side. Once you've cut all the way around, just open it up and break it apart at the stem. That's really easier to do that trying to cut off the stem -- these babies are tough!

Having split it in two, scoop out all the seeds and stringy, pithy stuff, rinse, and season as desired. You can stick with good ol' salt and pepper, or go a bit more adventurous. I use a spice mixture similar to Montreal Steak seasoning. Next, place the halves, cut side up, in an appropriately sized baking dish (I used a 13 x 9 x 3 Pyrex dish) with about an inch of water in it. Cover with aluminum foil and crimp it around the edges of the dish to seal it. Bake on the middle oven rack for about 45 minutes, more or less, depending on the size of the squash. Don't overcook it -- overcooked spaghetti squash is just as unappealing as overcooked pasta. It's ready when you can stick a fork into the flesh of the squash and pull some of it away from the shell.

Which leads us to the next step. Remove the halves from the dish and let them cool just enough to be able to handle them. While they cool, heat a skillet or wok with a couple tablespoons of butter or olive oil. Then, use a fork to pull away the bits of flesh from the shell, which will break into pieces resembling, you guessed it, spaghetti. As you accumulate a little mound of the "spaghetti," put it in the skillet/wok and continue to scrape out the shell until you've removed as much as you can. Stir-fry your "spaghetti" for about 5 minutes. Serve with a dash of garlic powder and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese, if desired. I left mine with just the pre-baking seasoning and butter and it was delicious.

If you decide to make this your first spaghetti squash dish, please leave me a note in the comment box and let me know how you liked it.