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Pumpkin Spaghetti squash casserole

Updated: Dec 7, 2018



 

So here is a beautiful picture of the ingredients. You’ll notice there’s spinach sitting there, all nice and neat. Don’t worry about it too much. I decided I didn’t want it in my recipe and the picture was already taken so i figured what was done was done. Just keep scrolling if it bothers you too much to look at. Also the meat isn’t pictured because well, food borne illness on table, but I used elk. I personally think chicken might be a better option for this recipe.


My humble opinion would be to go ahead and get pumpkin puree-it’ll save you half the time on this recipe. Just try to get a good brand AND MAKE SURE NOT TO GET THE PUMPKIN PIE FILLING ONE-just the pumpkin, not all that other crap they put in cans these days.



On the other hand, if you want to be a good little homemaker and get an arm workout sawing through that beast of a squash, you can do what I did and start your own little pumpkin butcher shop. I would suggest saving the seeds and roasting them! Soak them in hot water and it will help get the goop off and then you can separate them much easier when you are ready to roast.


Food is meant to nourish our bodies and fuel us for our days

I usually use a serrated knife for the initial cutting into the pumpkin and then use a butcher knife to chop it into smaller chunks so I can more easily get the skin off. Using a vegetable peeler works great for this step.


And voila- there you have your cubed pumpkin!

Real quick~ I always like to include health benefits of the foods I choose for recipes.



Food is meant to nourish our bodies and fuel us for our days, but so often we don’t actually know the transforming power that is in the food we eat. So here you go-best benefits to pumpkin:

  1. Extremely high in vitamin A (helps in sight, hair, skin and nails)

  2. IMMUNE BOOSTER

  3. High in antioxidants

  4. Low calorie- 50 calories per cup







Hope you cozy up with this recipe and reap all the benefits these foods have to offer


 

Serves 6-8


Ingredients:

1 large onion

4-5 cloves garlic, minced

1 spaghetti squash

4 cups pumpkin, cubed

1 lb meat (elk, chicken, beef etc)

1 cup feta cheese, crumbled

1/ cup pine nuts

2 tsp oregano

1 tsp parsley

2 tsp cinnamon

Pepper to taste


For sauce:

510 g (~2 heaping cups) cubed pumpkin for puree (or you can buy pre-pureed if you want to save yourself the work)

¼ cup + 2 Tbsp almond milk

1 tsp oregano

2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp parsley

Pinch of nutmeg and cinnamon

Leftover water from boiling pumpkin chunks


Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Cut spaghetti squash in half, lightly drizzle oil on front and back of squash. Place face down on tin foil lined baking sheet and place in oven for 40 minutes. Remove and let cool once cooked.


While spaghetti squash is cooking, dice large onion and mince garlic. Cube pumpkin. Add onion and garlic to frying pan with warmed oil and cook on medium heat until golden brown. Add in pumpkin and bring heat to medium-low and cover.


In a separate pan, begin to brown the meat. Once browned add oregano, parsley cinnamon and pepper.


Scrape spaghetti squash using a fork until insides are all out. Add to the pumpkin onions, along with the meat. Let simmer on low and taste test to see if extra spices are needed.


For sauce:

If making homemade pumpkin puree: cut, peel, and cube the pumpkin. Weigh out 510 grams (~2 heaping cups) and steam in a pot over boiling water until semi-soft.


Using some of the same water you boiled to soften the pumpkin, add small amounts to blender along with pumpkin and remaining sauce ingredients. (You only want to add enough water to make the sauce blend-if you add too much the sauce won’t be thick enough.) If you are using store bought pumpkin puree, simply add water from the faucet- again using just enough to make it blend and no more.


Add sauce to mixture on stove and make sure it is evenly distributed. Add to a baking dish. I used my Chantal cast iron pot. Top with cheese and pine nuts and cook for 10-15 minutes. Just enough to toast pine nuts and warm cheese. Serve with fresh parsley.


 

Need further recipe support or tips on how to cook? I'd love to help! Just click "let's do this thing" or "reach out" on my website at honestnurtirioncda.com


Mikyah RDN, LD

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