The first time I had spaghetti squash was in college when Erin’s grandmother Judy came to visit Erin in her awesome San Antonio apartment, and she and Judy cooked a delicious meal for some of Erin’s friends. I had never even seen a spaghetti squash before that meal, but it opened my culinary horizons to many types of squashes. Butternut and acorn are my most common choices, mostly because they are easiest to find, but a good spaghetti squash is a great addition to any meal, or a meal in itself!

Cooking the spaghetti squash is super easy. I typically dry roast squash in the oven, cut in half longways and laid facedown on a cookie sheet.  This time, I tried a cooking method from my culinary school textbook/cookbook which is the best resource I’ve found for basic cooking technique information.

Baked/Steamed Spaghetti Squash

Take a spaghetti squash and cut it in half, longways.  Clean out the seeds and entrails from the squash, and put it face down in a large roasting pan.  Add water to the pan to cover about 1/3rd of the squash.  Cover the pan with a lid or with foil.  Roast at 375 degrees for about an hour, or until a fork poked into the squash meets with no resistance. My squash took exactly an hour to finish.  Then take the squash out of the pan and remove the delicious insides, discarding the rind.

Once the squash is in a bowl, you can season as you like.  I added about 2 tablespoons of butter, salt and pepper, and some sauteed onions for a savory dish.

(Even dogs love this great and versitile food – mine wouldn’t leave me alone until he got some in his food dish – the look below says it all)