This spaghetti squash bolognese is the gluten-free pasta dinner you’ve been longing for! Easy to make and full of flavor, you’ll be glad you have this recipe in your arsenal, whether you are gluten free or not.
You may have experienced the thing about spaghetti squash in the garden. Once you put in one or two spaghetti squash plants, before you know it, you have dozens of spaghetti squash it seems! Fortunately, they keep for a long time on the counter or in a cool garage.
Yep. That was a harvest from ONE plant. Let’s not talk about what the other plants did. (Yes, I made a CAKE out of my spaghetti squash.)
This recipe starts with a gorgeous, flaky spaghetti squash and ends with your perfectly awesome Bolognese Italian meat sauce. Such a perfect combination. The hardest part about this dish is actually… well, it’s not really that hard. Pop the spaghetti squash in the oven for a while until soft, and starts flaking.
If you aren’t familiar with spaghetti squash, it is a beautiful, perfect yellow winter squash which, when roasted, flakes into strands which look a lot like pasta noodles. No spiralizer required!!! (see my zucchini noodle ramen recipe)
Ah, but does it taste like pasta you say? Well, I actually love that it is more buttery and less starchy than pasta. It tastes really pretty amazing. Especially with the sauce!
I make all of my own pasta sauce, and can it, so that’s how I start the sauce. I put it on the stove to a low flame, add the meat and a touch of cream for a super authentic Bolognese, and let that simmer while the spaghetti squash is roasting.
If you are still roasting spaghetti squash in a water bath, please don’t do that for this recipe! You’ll lose some of the buttery rich flavor of the winter squash, and you’ll probably end up making your thick rich Bolognese sauce watery.
Ingredients
- one Spaghetti Squash, cut in half the long way
- Olive Oil
- Salt and Pepper
- fresh herbs (rosemary, thyme, and oregano are our favorites!)
- one Jar homemade Tomato Sauce
- one medium onion, peeled and chopped
- 2-3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
- 2/3 pounds ground meat (the Italians in my family traditionally use half ground beef and half ground sausage)
- splash of cream (or milk)
Instructions to Cook the Spaghetti Squash
- Pre-heat the over to 400 degrees.
- Cut the squash in half lengthwise. You’ll need a large, and very sharp knife.
- Scoop out the seeds and save those for your chickens (or for next season’s garden). You don’t need to be quite as thorough with spaghetti squash as you would be with, say butternut.
- Brush the flesh of the squash with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper.
- Using a flat baking sheet, roast the spaghetti squash for 45 minutes to an hour, until the squash is soft on the skin side. (the skin will be brittle, but will cave inward when pierced with a fork)
- Once the squash has cooled enough to handle, scrape out the inside with a fork.
Instructions for the Bolognese
- While the squash is roasting, put your jar of tomato sauce in a saucepan on the stove on low heat.
- Sautee the onions and garlic in a sauté pan
- Add the ground meat to the sauté pan and cook until all the pink is gone (about 8 minutes)
- Season the meat with salt and pepper and your desired fresh herbs
- Transfer the meat and onion mixture to the tomato saucepan
- Continue to simmer until the spaghetti squash is soft and ready to come out of the oven. (your sauce should be quite thick – make sure to keep it on your lowest simmer burner!)
- Add the splash of cream of milk for a true authentic Bolognese.
- Top the spaghetti squash “pasta” with your Bolognese sauce and viola!
ENJOY!
