The sauce for this dish is made by pureeing equal parts mushrooms with stock and crème fresh or part-skim sour cream. So it tastes very creamy and rich but the amount of fat isn’t that great.
I cook spaghetti squash in the microwave because it’s fast and retains the flavor and slightly crisp texture of the squash and does so quickly. Note: occasionally the squash will “explode” open as you cook it. Although this is kind of shocking and slightly messy, there isn’t ultimately any problem if this happens. Just remove the squash, spoon off any seeds and scrape the rest of the vegetable into the pan as normal.
This recipe takes about 30 minutes from start to table. Serves six as a side dish or three as a main course and pairs well with grilled meats and green salads.
Ingredients
3 3.5 oz cartons mushrooms. I used one carton cremini (aka “baby bella”), one shiitake and one oyster. You could use white button mushrooms, trumpet or enoki as well.
1 medium sized spaghetti squash
5 scallions
Flat parsley – enough to make about ½ cup when chopped
2 Tablespoons olive oil
½ cup broth (chicken, vegetable or mushroom)
½ cup crème fresh or part-skim sour cream
½ cup parmesan cheese
smoked paprika
salt and pepper
Slice all the mushrooms and chop the scallions and parsley so all ingredients are ready to cook.
Pierce the spaghetti squash with a long fork several times so it’s less likely to explode in the microwave oven. Place the squash in the microwave and cook on high for five minutes.
While the squash cooks heat the oil in a sauté pan and add the scallions. Cook over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes until the onion starts to brown.
Add the mushrooms to the pan and sauté for 5 to 10 minutes over medium heat, stirring frequently.
Turn the spaghetti squash 180 degrees and set the microwave for another four minutes.
Remove mushroom mix from heat and measure out ½ cup of this mix into a food processor or blender. Add the crème fresh and the stock and blend into a fine puree.
The sauce is made from equal parts of broth, creme fresh, and mushrooms. I used 1/2 cup of each, blended in the food processor.
Remove squash from microwave and cut in half. Gently scrape out the seeds from the center, leaving the stringy part of the squash in place. Once the seeds are gone use a large spoon to scrape out the rest and place it in the pan with the mushrooms. The squash will break into strings on its own.
Add the mushroom sauce to the pan along with about a teaspoon of smoked paprika. Add the chopped parsley. Stir well over medium-high heat until well mixed and hot. Season with salt and pepper and more paprika if desired.
Sprinkle with parmesan cheese just before serving.
Seasoning options: along with the parsley add 2 to 3 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme or basil. Download and print this recipe here: Spaghetti Squash With Mixed Mushrooms
