Turkey Bolognese & Spaghetti Squash

Turkey Bolognese & Spaghetti Squash... Bolognese was a favorite of mine growing up, and this slightly healthier twist on my mom's classic has already been featured on Dahlicious. The one I made last night was pretty similar to the one I wrote about before, this time though I unfortunately didn't have any red wine on hand and used a bit more tomato paste than last time. Also, in the previous post I used a can of San Marzano crushed tomatoes, this time I had a can of San Marzano whole tomatoes so I did the crushing/cutting of those myself before adding to the sauteing turkey/onion/garlic mixture.

The Bolognese:
As I mentioned this is a sauce I've featured on the blog before. There are many variations depending on what you have but this time I used..
1 Large yellow onion
4 cloves crushed garlic
1 lb ground turkey
1 28oz can whole San Marzano tomatoes (gave those a crush/chop and used all the juicy sauce as well)
A few large tablespoons of tomato paste (leftover from the bit I used in my Creole Shrimp dish Sunday)
Salt, pepper, crushed dried oregano, crushed dried basil, a pinch of sugar, bay leaves

It's pretty simple just give the onions, garlic and turkey a good saute in the seasonings until fully cooked and slightly browned. Add the tomato paste & San Marzanos (red wine if you've got it) and more seasoning to taste. Toss in the bay leaves and let it simmer lightly for as long as you've got - I'd say at least 30-45 min for flavors to develop.

The Spaghetti Squash:
This is something my mom often made, and something I have been interested in making on my own for some time. I have had difficulty finding them in TJ's sometime's limited fresh produce department, but lately they've been in stock! So I grabbed two on Sunday hoping to put them to use this week. My mom usually boils/steams them whole, but I read a tip online that looked interesting and perhaps would keep the squash from becoming too watery as it often does.

1) Cut the stem off - this will make it easier to accomplish step 2
2) Cut the squash long ways - I was surprised at how hard the raw squash was so this took a bit of strength
3) Scoop out the gunky seedy center - very similar to what you might do with a pumpkin before carving
4) Drizzle the inside with olive oil, salt & pepper - or any seasonings you'd like but I'd keep it simple if you plan to serve it with a flavorful sauce
5) Place the halves face down on a cookie sheet - I think this must allow for the inside to steam naturally
6) Pop in the oven at 375 degrees for 35-45 minutes
7) Test the tenderness with a fork when you think it's done - it will be soft yet still have some integrity, it should be easily pierced with a regular ole fork even from outside
8) Use a fork to scrap out the meaty center after letting it cool for 5-10 minutes.

Scoop out those seeds

Flip them the other way to cook!!!!

Scrape out the tender "spaghetti"

Serve with any sauce and enjoy! It is a great alternative to pasta because you get the texture without all of the empty carbs. Happy Wednesday everyone!