As a diabetic, I love low carb meals. I wouldn’t say that I try to avoid carbs, I don’t think there is anything unhealthy about them. But as a diabetic, a meal that is both delicious and easy to manage is always greatly appreciated. That is one reason I always come back to this recipe, it has the great taste of a pasta or pizza type dish without the blood sugar consequences. Spaghetti squash is what ties it all together, a delicious under appreciated squash that tastes great when paired with tomato.

This recipe can be a bit time consuming if the squashes are not prepared in advance. Feel free to cook the squashes a day in advance and refrigerate until they are required. If you do the recipe all at once it is not hard, it is just that the squash needs to cook for roughly an hour and then cool before they can be handled. 

Cook time: 1h30

Active time: 40 mins

Ingredients: 

Squash:

2 spaghetti squash

Olive oil for cooking

Salt and pepper to taste

Filling:

2 red bell peppers

Large yellow onion

9 cloves garlic

4 cups spinach

1 tsp dried basil

1 tsp dried oregano

¼-½ tsp red pepper flakes (more for if you like spice)

1 tsp salt

½ cup grated fluffy Parmesan

1 jar of your favourite tomato sauce

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Bunch of basil for topping

Directions:

1. Cook the squash: heat your oven to 400°F. Cut the squash in half lengthwise. It can be quite hard, but keep at it. One tip is to cut off the stem and stand it on it’s head. Once cut, spoon out the seeds. Prepare two baking sheets with parchment paper. Drizzle the inside with olive oil and make sure to spread it over all the flesh. Salt and pepper the inside. Place it face down on the sheet, so it is like a dome. Cook for about an hour. Checking on it every ten minutes starting at the 50 minute mark. It should be easily pierced with a fork. 
2. Preheat/turn your oven down to 350°F. Cut the red bell peppers in half and remove the veins and the seeds. Slice them thinly, trying to stay as consistent as possible. Do the same for the onion, slicing it thinly to make nice semi-circle slices. Now peel the garlic, you can either press or mince the garlic, along your preferences.
3. Get a large bottomed pan, heat on medium-low heat and add enough olive oil to prevent sticking at the bottom. Once hot, add the onion, the bell pepper and the garlic. Cook on medium low heat for 7-10 minutes stirring occasionally. The goal is not to cook it through but to begin the cooking for it to be completed in the oven. They should still hold their form.
4. While the vegetables are cooking, it is a good time to prepare the squash. Please only do this step if your squash has cooled sufficiently. Run a fork through the cooked inside of the squash. It should come out in strands that look like spaghetti. Fork it out into a large salad bowl. 
5. Once the vegetables are done, add them to the bowl with the squash. Also add the spinach, dried basil, dried oregano, the dried red pepper flakes, the salt, the Parmesan and the tomato sauce. Mix to combine, taste and adjust the salt. 
6. Get a large glass casserole (9×13) dish out and spoon the squash mixture into it. Top it with an even layer of mozzarella cheese. Add it to the oven for 30 minutes. Once the thirty minutes is over, it should be bubbling a bit on the edges. Turn it on broil high and watch it closely to get a nice browning on the cheese.  Do not step away for this step as it is easy to burn. Chiffonade the basil and add it on top. Serve after allowing to cool a bit as it is quite hot. Enjoy!