Has It Really Been Almost a Month?!

Yikes! I guess it has been almost a month since my last post. You know, the holidays should be the time when bloggers hunker down and share all their amazing holiday cooking with the world. But apparently, I did the opposite. I went completely M.I.A. and tried to enjoy a little down time this holiday season, once again at my blog's expense. I totally missed my blog-a-versary for one. I've never written consistently in any one format for over a year, so I'm pretty jazzed about that milestone. I guess I feel compelled. The power of cooking has compelled you. That's as funny as I'm going to get on a Monday folks. Stay tuned for more hilarity as the week continues.

In the meantime, why don't I post some of these recipes I've been holding hostage from y'all.

One super duper, easy side to make is Spaghetti Squash. My dear friend and one-time college roommate introduced me to the amazing world of squash, and she showed me how incredibly easy it is to produce full and fall-rich flavors. When I was in college in upstate NY, we could go out and pick our own apples, pumpkins, and squash and nothing tastes better than fresh from the farm. Naturally, I fell in love.

Since I eat only one serving of complex carbs a day, usually in the form of quinoa, rice or rice products, I have to get creative with my side dishes. There's only so many vegetables that are low-medium oxalate, and there's only so many ways to cook them. Spaghetti Squash makes the best fake carb side dish ever: it's filling, full of flavor, and has the look and feel of a nice starch. Ready to see how easy this is?

Quick & Easy:

Roasted Spaghetti Squash

Ingredients:

1 medium to large Spaghetti Squash

olive oil

sea salt

pepper

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Rinse the outside of the squash.

With a fork, make puncture vents piercing the skin of the squash. Vent all sides of the squash.

Place squash in a pan, then pour about an inch of water into the pan.

Throw that pan in the oven, uncovered for about an hour (al dente) to an 1.5 hours (mushy.)

Remove from oven.

Carefully, cut the hot squash in half, length-wise, and scoop out/trash the guts.

Using a fork, grate the flesh of the squash. You'll notice spaghetti-like strands emerge. Grate until the entire squash is used.

Carefully put the grated squash into a big bowl and dress with olive oil, salt & pepper to taste. If you prefer to get grand with it, use sauce and cheese. Me, I'm a simple girl :)

Quick, easy, and cheap. You can't beat fake spaghetti with a great source of vitamin A, potassium, and folic acid.