You won’t miss the traditional pasta with this amazingly delicious spaghetti squash lasagna! It’s the perfect light summer meal (and gluten free/low carb if that’s important to you).
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Hi friends!
I love to eat spaghetti squash in the summer. It’s so light and yummy.
And the flavor of this dish is like rock-a-my-soul out of this world good. Love the cheesy-ooey-gooey-goodness.
Let’s get one thing straight though. It’s not really lasagna, okay? But humor me here because the cheesy ricotta topping is what makes this dish special. And it’s reminiscent of the cheesy insides of lasagna. So that’s where it got its name.
Here’s the basic run down of what we’ve got going on here.
Spaghetti squash – it’s a vegetable folks. A vegetable with fun spaghetti shaped noodles. If that doesn’t make you giddy, it’s also gluten free and low-carb (if you’re in to that kind of thing). Spaghetti squash is pretty easy to find in grocery stores during most times during the year, but we grow them in the garden. In fact I just used up the last of the spaghetti squash from our garden last summer. I keep them in a cool, dry spot in the basement and they last for months. Don’t worry if you’ve never cooked a spaghetti squash before because I’ve got three awesome cooking methods I’ll tell you about below.
A quick red sauce that’s easy and flavorful. Made with just 6 ingredients, it comes together quickly and is so good. You can use canned tomatoes or even fresh tomatoes from the garden.
Cheesy topping – three kinds of cheese (ricotta, mozzarella and Parmesan) plus a few seasonings. All the other components in this dish are obviously important, but this topping is what takes it to next level awesomeness. So yummy.
3 Ways to Cook Spaghetti Squash
Pressure Cooker Method
Place the spaghetti squash and 1 cup of water in the pressure cooking pot. You can keep them whole or cut them in half lengthwise (sometimes they fit better that way). You don’t need to remove the seeds before cooking but you can if you’d like. I usually wait until after I cook them because it’s easier when they are soft.
Make sure that the squash will not block the lid from sealing and then lock the lid in place. Cook 7-10 minutes on high pressure, depending on your desired “doneness”. We like ours fairly tender so usually go with the 10 minutes. Use a quick pressure release and carefully open cooker.
Oven Method
Cut the squash in half lengthwise and place cut side down on a lightly greased baking sheet (no water needed). Bake at 375 degrees for 40-50 minutes until it is very tender.
Microwave Method
Cut squash in half lengthwise. Place cut sides up on a microwave safe plate and cover with cling wrap. Microwave on high for 8-10 minutes or until tender. Allow to cool enough to handle before unwrapping.
Putting it all together
I love to serve this lasagna in the scooped out spaghetti squash shells. I think they are so fun. It works best if you have 2 smaller spaghetti squash, but you can also cut them in half to serve them. As another option, you can put this dish together in a greased 8×8-inch square baking pan.
Time to dig in, my friends.
Spaghetti Squash Lasagna
You won't miss the traditional pasta with this amazingly delicious spaghetti squash lasagna! It's the perfect light summer meal (and gluten free/low carb if that's important to you).
Ingredients
For Spaghetti Squash:
- 3 to 4 pounds spaghetti squash 1 extra large or 2 small
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
For Sauce:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup white or yellow onion diced, about ½ large onion
- 3 cloves fresh garlic minced
- 1 pound sweet Italian sausage
- 1 14.5-ounce can diced or petite diced tomatoes see note
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil or 1 teaspoon dried
For Cheesy Topping:
- ½ cup ricotta cheese
- 2 tablespoons fresh parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley or 1 teaspoon dried
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- ¾ cup grated mozzarella cheese divided
- chopped fresh basil or parsley for garnish,if desired
Instructions
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Cook the spaghetti squash using one of the methods below until desired tenderness is reached.
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Pressure Cooker Method: Place the spaghetti squash and 1 cup of water in the pressure cooking pot. You can keep them whole or cut them in half lengthwise (sometimes they fit better that way). You don't need to remove the seeds before cooking but you can if you'd like (I usually don't). Make sure that the squash will not block the lid from sealing and then lock the lid in place. Cook 7-10 minutes on high pressure, depending on your desired "doneness". We like ours fairly tender. Use a quick pressure release and carefully open cooker.
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Oven Method: Cut the squash in half and place cut side down on a lightly greased baking sheet (no water needed). Bake at 375 degrees for 40-50 minutes until it is very tender.
-
Microwave Method: Cut squash in half lengthwise. Place cut sides up on a microwave safe plate and cover with cling wrap. Microwave on high for 8-10 minutes or until tender. Allow to cool enough to handle before unwrapping.
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Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
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Prepare the sauce in a large 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Heat the olive oil until hot, then add onions and garlic and cook for about 3 minutes until onions start to soften. Add Italian sausage and cook, breaking it up into small pieces as it cooks until meat is no longer pink. Stir in the diced tomatoes and basil and simmer for about 5 minutes until sauce begins to thicken.
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Prepare cheesy topping by combining ricotta, fresh Parmesan, parsley, ¼ teaspoon salt and ⅛ teaspoon pepper in small bowl. Stir in ½ cup mozzarella cheese into the topping, reserving ¼ cup for later.
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Scoop out the seed layer of spaghetti squash and discard. Drain excess liquid from spaghetti squash and scoop into a large bowl. Reserve the shells, if using for serving (optional).
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Toss the spaghetti squash with ½ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, and ½ of the prepared sauce. Divide evenly and place back into the reserved shells on a baking sheet OR place in an greased 8×8-inch square baking pan.
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Top spaghetti squash with ricotta cheese mixture (dividing evenly between shells, if using) and sprinkle with ¼ cup grated mozzarella cheese.
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Bake in preheated 400 degree F for 20 minutes or until spaghetti squash is heated through and cheese is lightly brown and bubbly. Garnish with chopped fresh basil or parsley, if desired.
Recipe Notes
1. You can also use diced fresh tomatoes in this recipe. Yum.
Recipe Source: Heather @ The Cook’s Treat
All images and text ©The Cook’s Treat
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