Every other week or so, I will cook 2-3 spaghetti squash to keep in the fridge. I use it to replace pasta and rice in recipes and it is very versatile with most spices and seasonings. On a busy weeknight, pre-cooked spaghetti squash is a huge time-saver. This recipe from Cooking Light includes the directions for cooking the squash with the rest of the meal. If you have already pre-cooked squash, just leave that step out and serve the chicken mushroom mixture over it before serving.
Spaghetti Squash with Chicken and Mushrooms
1. Preheat broiler. Cut poblano in half lengthwise; discard seeds and membranes. Place pepper halves, skin sides up, on a foil-lined baking sheet; flatten with hand. Broil 5 minutes or until blackened. Place in a zip-top plastic bag; seal. Let stand 5 minutes. Peel and chop.
3. Reduce oven temperature to 400 °.
4. Cut squash in half lengthwise; discard seeds. Place squash halves cut side down in a 13×9-inch baking dish. Add water to measure 1/2-inch deep. Bake at 400 ° for 45 minutes. Turn squash over; bake an additional 15 minutes or until tender; cool. Scrape inside of squash with a fork to remove strands to measure 6 cups. Keep warm.
5. Heat 1 1/2 teaspoons oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add bacon to pan; cook until crisp. Remove bacon from pan. Cool and crumble. Increase heat to medium-high; sprinkle chicken evenly with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Add chicken to drippings in pan and cook 4 minutes; remove from pan.
6. Heat remaining 11/2 teaspoons oil over medium-high heat. Add onion to pan and cook 3 minutes or until soft, stirring frequently. Add remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, reserved bacon, Poblano, garlic and Italian seasoning to pan; cook 1 minute.
7. Stir in mushrooms and cook 4 minutes or until softened, stirring occasionally. Add wine to pan and cook 3 minutes or until liquid evaporates, stirring occasionally. Add tomato paste and cook 1 minute stirring constantly. Add reserved chicken, chicken broth, tomatoes, and spinach to pan. Cook 2 minutes or until spinach wilts, stirring constantly; stir in 1/4 cup cheese.
8. Place about 1 cup squash on each of 6 plates; top each serving with about 1 cup chicken mixture and 2 teaspoons remaining cheese.
To save even more time, I often make a big batch of chicken on the weekend. If you have already pre-cooked your chicken and spaghetti squash during your weekend meal prep, all that is left is roasting the pepper and cooking the vegetables. I will make this again because it was GREAT!
This post created on behalf of the Cooking Light Bloggers’ Connection