Tomato Garlic Spaghetti Squash

Fresh tomatoes, garlic and capers come together with white wine in this delightful recipe for Tomato Garlic Spaghetti Squash.

Sometimes when my kids and I go to the farmers market, plans go awry.

We’re there for corn, tomatoes and ground beef but come home with four types of squash and a giant bag of freshly roasted peppers. But that’s the kind of awry I get excited about.

It’s local food, grown with love.

It’s healthy food that we’re excited to eat.

Okay, sometimes I am the only excited one. Like when I picked up a delicata squash to roast — I could eat that every day. My kids? Not so much, even when I said it’s like nature’s candy. But that’s okay — more for me!

(To be fair, they do eat it. Begrudgingly.)

Spaghetti squash is another story though. We all love that — always have. Will was just two years old the first time he had it (in this dish, coincidentally) and he couldn’t get enough of it. At 14, he still can’t.

When you cook spaghetti squash, it naturally breaks into strands (like spaghetti!). It makes a fantastic gluten-free, low-calorie alternative to pasta.

And if you’re making this lovely winter squash, why not add a sauce? In fact, just make Tomato Garlic Spaghetti Squash. It’s fresh, rich and comforting. Delightful — and perfect for autumn.

How to make Tomato Garlic Spaghetti Squash

For this recipe, you’ll need a small spaghetti squash — about 7 to 8 inches long. That will give you the right squash to sauce ratio.

Start by preparing the squash. You need to cut it in half length-wise and remove the seeds and darker yellow sinews. Discard, or save the seeds for roasting. Did you know you can roast squash seeds for a snack?

Now, onto cooking the squash. I roast mine for about 30 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit. This cooks it through without turning the squash mushy.

Then make the sauce.

This is easy — cook the garlic briefly (about a minute) until it’s fragrant. Then add tomatoes and capers to the mix. Season it with some salt and pepper. Then pour in some white wine.

Let it cook for about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, use a fork to shred the squash. Transfer that to a serving bowl.

Top with the cooked tomato mixture. And serve. See? Easy peasy.

And yes, this is totally Will and Paige approved. And, coincidentally, it’s also great for those of you on Weight Watchers. It has about 1 point per serving (only the olive oil has points!).