3 Cheese Spaghetti Squash Bake

Okay, I'm giving this vegetable a second chance and I'm so glad that I did. I'm not quit sure what I was thinking last time I fixed this unusual gourd but I didn't season it or do much of anything to it at all. I think I went by what someone else said, which was to just add olive oil, salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese...I was highly disappointed. So when I saw this recipe I thought okay, how can I make this better and add a little "umph" to it...So I added the Parmesan cheese, cottage cheese, egg white, salt, & garlic powder and made it like I would have made any other type of baked spaghetti...minus the spaghetti.
Why spaghetti squash and not just plain ole' noodles....I've been wanting to get away from the pasta. Seems every time I eat it...it seems to lay on my tummy like a brick and I'm not satisfied with the amount of pasta I get either...Plus it went towards my veggies/ fiber I needed to eat for the day :)
Now I used the smallest squash I could get cause it would be only me eating it (just couldn't get the hubby to try any, although he did say it smelled really good) So I got 3 cups out of mine, which was perfect for 1.5 cups each for 2 servings sizes and I served mine with a nice piece of lemon pepper tilapia....

So here's how to cook a spaghetti squash for those that haven't cooked one before. I cut mine in half, length wise, and lay it flat on a plate, then pierced the out side of it with a fork a couple of times. Then I micro-waved it on high for about 5-6 minutes until it is soft. Let it cool for about 10minutes and then scrape out the seeds. After that you take a fork and just drag the fork, with the grain of the squash, length wise and it will start to pull away from the skin. Put squash in a medium size bowl and set a side and let cool more, if still warm...

scrape out seeds

Shred with a fork...

Here's what you'll need (forgot to put egg whites & cottage cheese in pic...)

Remember I made enough for 2...you can always double the recipe depending on the size of your squash and go to

http://www.sparkrecipes.com/ to figure out calories....

3 cups Spaghetti Squash, cooked & shredded
1 cup low-fat spaghetti sauce
2 egg whites (equals 1 egg)
2oz Cabot's 75% fat free cheddar cheese, shredded
1/4 cup fat free Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup fat free cottage cheese
garlic powder~ to taste
Kosher salt~ to taste

Once squash has cooled add egg whites, garlic powder and kosher salt. (Sorry, I'd tell you the exact measurements, but I guesstimated) Toss together, then add the 3 cheeses and mix together. Put mixture into a glass dish. (I used a 9x7 glass dish sprayed with PAM) Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Check to see if casserole has set in the middle, if not then bake an additional 10min.

My verdict....although it's not pasta, it's still pretty tasty and I got a very healthy portion size for the points value...Differently a do-over!

Nutritional Info:

6pts for 1.5 cups

• Servings Per Recipe: 2
• Amount Per Serving
• Calories: 257.3

• Total Fat: 4.2 g
• Cholesterol: 11.3 mg
• Sodium: 1,281.9 mg
• Total Carbs: 34.5 g
• Dietary Fiber: 5.3 g
• Protein: 22.8 g