Spaghetti Squash and Ricotta Casserole

Cooking spaghetti squash always reminds me of when I lived with my friend Katrina. I had never heard of spaghetti squash before, and she was the one who introduced me to it. Now I swear by it, as it’s a low carb substitute for pasta. It doesn’t taste exactly the same, but I think they taste similar enough to curb a pasta craving. Spaghetti squash has a lighter taste and is more tender than pasta noodles, but it still pairs well with things you would normally serve with pasta.

When I’ve eaten spaghetti squash in the past, I’ve just cooked it up and served with sauce and meatballs of some sort. Recently Tim and I decided that we wanted to switch it up a bit, so we tried our hand at a spaghetti squash casserole.

Spaghetti Squash and Ricotta Casserole

Ingredients

• 1 large spaghetti squash
• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup shredded cheese of choice (we went with Parmigiano Reggiano)
• 2/3 cup slivered sun-dried tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• salt and pepper, to taste
• Marinara sauce, optional

Directions

For cooking the spaghetti squash…

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Cut the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise.
3. Scoop out and discard seeds.
4. Place squash halves cut side up on pan. Brush with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
5. Roast for about 45 minutes or until a fork punctures the flesh of the squash easily.
6. Remove squash from oven and allow it to cool slightly. Scrape the flesh from the squash into stringy “noodles.” Set aside for the casserole.

For cooking the casserole…

1. Set oven to 350 degrees.
2. Spray an 8×8 baking dish with cooking spray of choice.
3. Mix all ingredients together with the cooked spaghetti squash and arrange in baking dish.
4. Cook until bubbly, about 30-40 minutes.
5. Serve with warm marinara sauce if desired.
6. Enjoy!

The verdict? Loved! The ricotta cheese and sun-dried tomatoes added a lot of flavor to the normally mild taste of the spaghetti squash. It was fun to eat this squash in a different way than we normally do, and now I’m feeling inspired to experiment with some other new spaghetti squash recipes soon.

Have you ever tried spaghetti squash? What’s your favorite way to make it?