Ah, wouldn’t life be divine if I had the metabolism that let me eat all the pasta and carbs that I want? Plus drink wine too?
Well, unfortunately I don’t and this recipe is for those who wish they could eat more pasta but don’t want the guilt. When you substitute spaghetti squash for pasta, you get all the saucy, italian sausage and parmesan cheese you want, without the guilt and bloat from the pasta. This recipe is also good for those who are eating Gluten free.
If I had the choice to fill up on marinara and grilled italian sausage over any noodle, I’d pick italian sausage any day.
I first heard about spaghetti squash ages ago when my mom made it for dinner when I was in junior high. My dad used to travel all the time and she started getting culinarily adventurous and subscribing to the Vegetarian times!
In the 80’s too when it was at its hey-day.
Anyway, I digress but my first memory of spaghetti squash is with my mom and I will always lover her for that.
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Low Carb Pasta: Spaghetti Squash with Grilled Italian Sausage and Peppers
- Yield: serves 2 people 1x
Ingredients
- 1 spaghetti squash
- one large jar of marinara sauce (buy the lower sugar kind)
- 1 package of italian sausage (the spicier the better)
- 6–8 mini peppers
- arugula (optional)
- olive oil/vinegar
- parmesan cheese
Instructions
You can bake, boil or even microwave a spaghetti squash. If you can cut it in half you will cut down on your cooking time significantly. However, it is very difficult to cut a spaghetti squash in half!
I do mine (whole) in the microwave. I prick the squash with a fork all over and put it in a microwave safe casserole dish. I put in about 1 inch of water to help steam the squash and then microwave for about 20 minutes or until the outside can EASILY be punctured with a fork. Cooking time is going to vary because everyone’s microwave is different.
Meanwhile, I grill the sausage and peppers on medium high heat until nice char marks have formed. You can easily do this with a grill pan if you don’t want to use your grill.
Simultaneously I will also heat up the marinara in a sauce pan.
Once the squash is finished cooking, you will be able to easily cut it in half. (Be careful! It’s going to be hot and full of steam!). Once halved, removed the seeds (much like with a pumpkin) and “shred” the squash. This is why it is called spaghetti squash- the flesh of the squash shreds into fine, noodle like strands.
Plate the squash, add marinara and then chop up the sausage and peppers and distribute on both plates. Serve with a generous helping of fresh grated parmesan. I always pair this with an arugula salad with oil/vinegar as it also adds nice color to the plate! Enjoy your guilt-free spaghetti!
This is what spaghetti squash looks like when you shred it to make “noodles”.
Spaghetti squash- tastes great and good for you too!
Looks great! I’m all about low-carb eating at home. I definitely want to try this! Great recipe 🙂
Saw you on chopped grill masters. Hope you do your blog full time 🙂 cheers.
Thanks Mateo! I appreciate the support!
Thanks Julius. I have to eat low carb at home, otherwise I’d be as big as a house!!
This is such a great idea. We just made a pasta dish the other day with Italian sausage and roasted peppers that we’ll be posting on our site in the next couple weeks. But, I love this idea of spaghetti squash! We are definitely going to have to try this.
Kevin, spaghetti squash is the bomb. That’s all there is too it! 🙂 Let me know what you think when you give it a try!
Love pasta but always been afraid of the carbs. This looks really good and can’t wait to try this recipe.
Me too Megan. Now you can have the pasta without the guilt!