These Spaghetti Squash Boats with Spicy Sausage have all the same great flavors as normal spaghetti, but with half the calories and carbs!
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Ok guys, this is huge.
I love spaghetti as much as the next person, but ohh do I hate those carbs. The first time I ever tried spaghetti squash I was sooo skeptical (and I tend to be super picky) – I mean how in the world would squash taste as good as pasta?? Well clearly vegetables have been surprising me lately and YES, this is another winner folks. Creating the “noodles” from this squash is so incredibly easy. Seriously – if you can boil water, you can make spaghetti squash. Plain. and. simple. All you have to do is cut the squash in half, scoop out the seeds, bake them {cut side down} for about 45 minutes in the oven then start scraping with a fork!
Boom spaghetti.
Squash has little to no taste so it’s amazing the different flavor combinations you can come up with! I wanted to do something a little different than just a basic marinara that I’m used to having so I thought it’d be fun to make individual squash boats tossed with a creamy sauce and spicy sausage. Turkey sausage that is. Jennie-O has a DELICIOUS spicy ground turkey sausage that is lean and low in fat/calories, but really you could use any type of sausage you’d like! This sauce is so flavorful and seriously so simple to make, the best part is you can make everything all in the same skillet. Toss the spaghetti squash in with the sauce and turkey until completely coated and transfer everything into the squash boats. Top with cheese, bake in the oven and enjoy!
Oh and did I mention, one whole cheesy boat is only 270 calories! I think that alone makes this worth a try, don’t ya think??
I seriously can’t believe it’s now officially Fall, I feel like summer flew by just like that! Trust me I’m not complaining, I’m all about the pumpkin spiced lattes, cozy sweaters, boots with leggings and admiring all the pretty foliage, but when I left work yesterday it was over 80 degrees! Mother nature what the heck is up?? All my scarves are out and ready to be worn, but this weather has me like ready to lay back out by the pool.
Well even though the heat is still pretty high for mid-September, I’m still excited about sharing Fall recipes! Let me know what recipes YOU would like to see this season and I’d be happy to share!
Spaghetti Squash Boats with Spicy Sausage
Ingredients
- 2 ripe spaghetti squash
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 lb. ground hot turkey sausage, I used Jennie-O
- 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 (10 oz) can Rotel tomatoes
- 1/4 cup half and half
- Pinch red pepper flakes
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. pepper
- 1/2 cup part skim Mozzarella cheese, shredded and divided
- 2 Tbsp basil, thinly sliced
Instructions
- To make the spaghetti squash, preheat oven to 350 degrees F and cut squash right down the middle. Scoop out all the seeds and place cut side down on a baking sheet lightly sprayed with oil. DO NOT PIERCE WITH A FORK!! Many recipes say to do this, but we are using these cuts of squash later as bowls so you want them to remain intact.
- Bake squash in the oven for 45 minutes until tender.
- Meanwhile, drizzle oil into a large skillet and saute onion and garlic until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add turkey sausage and cook until crumbled and lightly brown, draining if necessary, then add chicken broth, tomatoes, half and half, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Bring everything to a boil then cover and allow flavors to simmer on low to medium heat until spaghetti squash is ready.
- Remove squash from the oven and scrape out all the strands of spaghetti using a fork. Add all the spaghetti squash to your skillet along with a 1/4 cup of cheese. Toss well until cheese is melted and squash is fully coated with sauce.
- Transfer squash mixture into your now scraped out squash bowls and top with the rest of your cheese. Place them back in the oven for about 3 to 4 minutes until cheese is melted and squash is heated through.
- Top with basil, serve and enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I love spaghetti squash and I was searching for something to do with it other than sauce, mozzarella, and ricotta. This recipe is DELICIOUS! Both of my kids are away at school and my husband works crazy hours AND he’s the pickiest eater on the planet so I had to figure out how to make it for 1. It was worth doing math (EEK!) to figure out the measurements. I can’t wait to make it again and try some of the other recipes in your blog. Thank you!!!
Yay I’m SO glad you and your family enjoyed this Grace! 🙂
I used lean ground turkey and added Jalapenos because I could not find (1 lb. ground hot turkey sausage (I used Jennie-O). And it worked out quite well. And I also used parmesan cheese to top it off.
Soooo good! My son is 24 and was always a picky eater. He is getting more adventurous but I was unsure if he would like the spaghetti squash but it was a HUGE hit! Even my British husband who is a meat and potatoes guy and he even loved it!!! Thanks. I tweaked it a bit but it was still amazing!!!! Thanks!
Question: does this recipe serve 2 or 4? I see 2 ripe squashes in the recipes so I’m guessing 4, but I just want to be sure. Looks good 🙂
Just made this….could not find turkey sausage (used regular)….it was freakin delicious! Will make it again!
Delicious!! Made them for dinner tonight. The only thing I did different was I substituted ground chicken for the ground turkey. Absolutely the best flavor! Leftovers tomorrow ????????
I noticed you said you used “ground hot turkey sausage (I used Jennie-O)”…I am familiar with Jenny-O ground turkey and their turkey sausage, but am having some trouble finding the right one. I am IN NO WAY a cook…so just looking for clarification, did you use the Jenny-O Hot Italian Turkey sausage that comes in links?Thats the only “hot” one I could find! thank you!!
Hi Alex! No I didn’t use the Jennie-O sausage links, my grocery store had spicy ground turkey sausage, but you’re right I can’t seem to find it when I look on-line. Feel free to use regular ground turkey as that would taste just as delicious!!
I made this last night adding mushrooms to the mix. It was soooo good I can’t wait for lunch and leftovers today!! Thank you Kelly for your recipes. They’re wonderful!
Ooo mushrooms sound great!! So glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Delish!!!!
I made this tonight for my fiancé. He can be judgemental so I didn’t tell him what it was as I was cooking lol! he asked about if it had spaghetti and I simply said “yes” lol. He absolutely loved it and loved it even more when I told him it was squash spaghetti and he doesn’t have to feel as guilty eating more than 1 squash bowl! he wants this weekly now! Thanks for the recipe! Looking forward to more!
Haha! I’m so glad you both enjoyed this! I have to do the same with my hubby and sneak in those veggies any way I can! 😉