Spaghetti Squash Skillet

Tana Anderson
Jan 13, 2016
2 min read

Right now I am following the Hammer and Chisel nutrition plan, and I have been 100% committed to that. That means I've been eating lots of vegetables and protein, and not a lot of bread and carbs. For me, that isn't too hard because we eat gluten free, and processed carbs are not a huge part of my diet anyways, but I am still eating less carbs then usual- and I am feeling a slight bit of carb cravings...

I saw a similar recipe online, and thought it looked beautiful, gave me lots of veggies, and would give me the sweetness I was craving from some carbs. Mine did not turn out quite as beautiful (I shoudl have saved a little bit of squash to top with so you could see it better) but it was full of veggies and protein, but tasted amazing. Plus it was easy! So here is my recipe to share:

There are a few things I changed from the original recipe- First, I did not use any tomato sauce- in my meal plan that counts as a fruit, and I'm not wasting a fruit container on tomato sauce when I can easily replace that. I also did not include mushrooms, but I did use green peppers and added celery. I also used ground venison because I have that in my freezer to use, and I thought it would be a perfect use for that.

The first thing I did was bake my spaghetti squash. I first washed it, then popped it into the microwave for 5 min. That made it easy to cut in half, length wise, and scoop the seeds out. I then placed it cut side down on a parchment lined cookie sheet, and baked it in a 375 deg oven for 30 min.

I then browned my venison (about 1.5lbs) and then set aside. While that is browning I shred my spaghetti squash and leave in the skins.

In the same skillet, I added about 2 tbsp of coconut oil and let that melt, then added onion, celery, and green peppers. I cooked that on medium heat for about 7-8 min, then added the garlic for 1 min. You do not want to over cook the garlic and burn it.

I then added 1 (15oz) can of diced tomatoes (with no salt added), 1/2 can of tomoto paste and mixed well. To that I added my squash, and then my sliced tomatoes. I let that simmer until hot, or about 5 min. I topped with some chopped parsley and added avocado to mine. It was sweet, and everyone loved it.

I counted 1.5 cups as 1 green and 1 red.