Spaghetti Squash with Tomato Basil Sauce

When I prepared spaghetti squash for the first time, cutting it in half was quite an adventure because I didn’t know how to properly handle it. The shell is very tough and hard to cut, so going lengthwise is not the easiest thing to do. I’m happy to announce that, meanwhile, I mastered the art of cutting spaghetti squash the easy way. Well, you never stop learning, right? Instead of lengthwise, I now cut it across the middle right around the belt. This also has the advantage of leaving the strands intact that gave spaghetti squash its name. The result are beautiful, long squash noodles that you can twirl around your fork like regular spaghetti. The taste is amazing, especially in combination with this light, flavorful tomato basil sauce. A gluten free, plant based spaghetti delight!

Ingredients: 

(2-4 servings, depending on size of squash and your appetite)

For the squash:

• 1 spaghetti squash (mine was 4 lb/1900 g)
• ½ tsp Celtic sea salt
• 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, more for casserole dish

For the sauce:

• 4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 sweet onion, diced
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 3½ lb (1600 g) Roma tomatoes, diced
• 3 Tbsp homemade veggie broth concentrate or store-bought vegetable broth powder to taste
• 2-3 Tbsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 5 Tbsp tomato paste
• Celtic sea salt to taste
• fresh basil to taste, minced right before serving (I used about ½ cup and kept some leaves for garnish)

Optional: vegan Parmesan as a topping (for quick cashew Parmesan see notes)

Preparation:

Preheat your oven to 400° F (200° C).

Coat the bottom of a casserole dish with extra virgin olive oil. (You can also use a baking sheet covered with either parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.)

Rinse and cut tomatoes, peel and dice onion and garlic.

Rinse and dry the spaghetti squash. Place it onto a (preferably) non-slip surface. You could even use a non-slip drawer liner. Find the middle and use a sharp chef’s knife to carefully cut into the squash so that the knife can’t slip to the sides anymore.

Get your fingers out of the way and use both hands to cut all the way through.

Cut off ends to have a flat surface. 

Remove seeds and stringy parts with either your fingers or a spoon. 

Rub the insides and cut sides with Celtic sea salt and about 1 Tbsp olive oil. Place the 2 halves upright into your casserole dish or onto the baking sheet with hollow sides up. 

Bake in the preheated oven for 40 – 60 minutes. Start checking after about 30 minutes. The top shouldn’t be burned and you should be able to easily separate the noodles. Just try and see, if you have to add a few minutes. 

Meanwhile, prepare tomato sauce:

Preheat a large sauce pan or pot over medium heat. Add extra virgin olive oil with diced onion and sauté for about 7 minutes until onion is soft.

Add garlic, and sauté shortly for about 1 minute.

Add diced tomatoes, veggie broth concentrate (or broth powder), maple syrup, and dried herbs. If you opted for store-bought broth powder/granulate, add it gradually. It’s much saltier than the homemade version. 

Bring everything to a boil, then reduce heat just a little, and cook for about 20 minutes until tomatoes have fallen apart and a nice saucy texture is achieved. 

Add tomato paste and, if necessary, Celtic sea salt to taste. Cook for 5 more minutes. Right before serving, stir in lots of freshly minced basil.

When the spaghetti squash is ready, remove it from the oven. Loosen the spaghetti strands from the sides with a fork and separate the strands. It’s very hot, so be careful!

Now you can either place the squash halves into bowls and serve them with sauce in the shell….

…. or scrape the squash noodles into a serving bowl with sauce on the side. Enjoy!

Notes:

• If you plan on using the natural shell as your bowl, try to choose rather round than oblong squash. If you can’t find round ones, no problem. Just cut a ring out of the middle. This will give you 2 bowls. Bake the ring with the squash bowls and also scrape out the ‘spaghetti’ when it’s done.
• I just love to serve my Italian-themed dishes with lots of cashew Parmesan. It’s so easy to make and keeps in the fridge for quite a while. There are only 3 ingredients:
  • 1 generous cup (140 g) raw, unsalted cashews
  • 1 tsp Celtic sea salt
  • 4 Tbsp nutritional yeast flakes
• To prepare, place all the ingredients into your blender or food processor. Pulse until a crumbled Parmesan-like texture is achieved. Ready in less than 2 minutes!