Recipe courtesy of Alexandria McQueen
Ingredients:
1 medium spaghetti squash (about 2lbs)
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1 celery stalk
1 carrot
1 small yellow onion
4 cloves garlic
1/4 cup parsley
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1 lbs ground beef or turkey
1 egg, whisked
1 cup grated Parmesan
1 jar strained tomatoes
1 large can diced tomatoes
2 tsp dried basil
1 tsp oregano
pinch cinnamon
2 tbsp Parmesan cheese
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400F.
Cut squash in half, lengthwise, scoop out seeds and soft flesh. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Place on a baking sheet and cook in oven for 30 minutes. Done when fork pierces flesh without too much resistance.
While squash is cooking, roughly chop the celery, carrot, onion and garlic. Place them in a food processor along with the parsley and Italian seasoning. Blend until it's a rough paste. Reserve 1/3 of the mixture for meatballs. Take remaining 2/3 and place in a large pot with 1 tbsp olive oil. Over medium heat, cook for 5 minutes. Add strained and diced tomatoes, basil, oregano, and a pinch of cinnamon. Continue to cook over low-med heat.
To make meatballs, put the reserved vegetable paste, meat, whisked egg, oats, Parmesan into bowl. Mix with hands until just combined. If mixture is too wet, add more oats. Roll into 12 -16 balls (depends on how large you like). Place meatballs on baking pan and put in oven for 10 minutes, or until slightly firm. After 10 minutes, remove meatballs from oven and place in sauce. Simmer for another 30 minutes or until meatballs reach internal temperature of 160F.
When squash has finished cooking, remove from oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes. Once cooled, use a fork to scrape out the strings of squash. The more you pull them apart, the fluffier the 'noodles' will seem. Toss with 2 tbsp of Parmesan cheese.
Plate large scoop of squash and place sauce and meatballs on top. Sprinkle with more cheese if you like.