Baked Spaghetti Squash and Cheese
My name is Brooke and I’m a cheese-aholic. It was a sad, sad day when I became lactose-intolerant shortly after starting college. No more milk, cheese or ice cream? Sob! Things have gotten better since then—there are a myriad of lactose-free alternatives; Lactaid milk is a Godsend; and Cabot Cheese has a wide variety of lactose-free cheeses—Yippee!
While I enjoy cheese, it can be heavy at times, particularly when baked with pasta. This recipe is a perfect alternative—eliminating the pasta and adding chicken broth for richness, this dish is light, but feels decadent!
Baked Spaghetti Squash and Cheese
Recipe from Skinnytaste.com
Serves 7 • Serving Size: 1 cup • Calories: 165 • Fat: 8g
Ingredients
5 1/2 cups cooked spaghetti squash (from about 2 small)
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup minced onion
1/4 cup flour
2 cups skim milk
1 cup fat free chicken broth (use vegetable broth if you want to go vegetarian)
2 cups shredded Cabot 50% Reduced Fat Cheddar Cheese
salt and pepper to taste
4 cups baby spinach
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Cut the squash in half lengthwise; remove and discard seeds. Place squash on a baking sheet. Bake until tender, about 1 hour. Separate the strands of squash with a fork and place in a medium bowl; discard shells. Maintain oven temperature.
3. Heat butter and oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook about 2 minutes. Stir in flour. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring continually 3-4 minutes.
4. Add milk and chicken broth and continue whisking, raising heat to medium-high until it comes to a boil and becomes smooth and thick, about 2 minutes stirring; season with salt and pepper.
5. One it becomes thick, remove from heat, add 1 1/4 cups cheese and mix well until cheese is melted. Adjust salt and pepper to taste, add cooked spaghetti squash and baby spinach, pour into a baking dish and sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Bake until bubbly and golden, 25 to 30 minutes. I recommend placing a cookie sheet under the baking dish to collect any liquid that boils over. Also, this recipe makes a lot, so I popped over to my parents place and used their oven—my toaster oven wasn’t going to cut it this time!