*Spaghetti Squash with Cheese & Fresh Spinach*

As I am sure some of you have noticed, I absolutely love Gina's Skinny Taste blog.  It is one of my favorites because everything I have tried is great, and also low cal.  I made this for Jay O. & me last week & it was delish.  It was great the next day for lunch, too.  I would not say it tastes like mac n' cheese ... just kind of like I will never say cauliflower tastes like mashed potatoes ... but it is great to have this when you're craving some cheesy goodness! And, it's a great dish for meatless Monday's :-)

Original Recipe found here.

Ingredients:
5 1/2 cups cooked spaghetti squash (I used one LARGE spaghetti squash)
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup minced onion
1/4 cup flour (use 2 tbsp corn starch for gf)
2 cups skim milk
1 cup fat free chicken broth (vegetable broth for vegetarian)
8 oz 2% reduced fat mild cheddar
salt and pepper, to taste
4 cups (about 4 oz) baby spinach
1/8 cup grated parmesan

 

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375ºF.

Poke holes in squash with a fork.  Bake the squash whole on a baking sheet until tender (knife should be able to pierce through the squash easily when done) about 1 hour - 1 hour 15 min.  Let squash cool about 15 minutes.  Cut spaghetti squash in half.  Remove seeds.  Then separate the strands of squash with a fork & place strands in a medium bowl (discard shells).   Maintain the oven temperature. 

Heat butter and oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onions and cook about 2 minutes. Stir in flour. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring continually 3 - 4 minutes.

Add milk and chicken broth and continue whisking, raising heat to medium-high until it comes to a boil and becomes smooth and thick, about 2 minutes stirring; season with salt and pepper.

Once it becomes thick, remove from heat, add cheddar cheese and mix well until cheese is melted. Adjust salt and pepper to taste, add cooked spaghetti squash and baby spinach, pour into a baking dish and sprinkle parmesan cheese on top. Bake until bubbly and golden 25 to 30 minutes.