There are flurries outside, y’all!! I can’t believe it! I woke up, marched immediately downstairs to drink my coffee, played with the kids, an hour later decided it was time to get out of my pj’s, looked out the window to determine what would be an appropriate thing to wear and BAM. Flurries!!
I love snow when it’s falling. I love snow before anyone walks in it. I love the snow until January 2nd. Then I’m about done with the snow and am ready for springtime and sunshine and flip flops and flowers.
The cold can be fun for snuggling by the fire, drinking hot cocoa, and making warm, hearty food to eat. When I was growing up, these hearty dishes were something to “stick to ya bones” aka fatten you up for winter to get you through the cold months. Sure enough, come winter time and I crave that kind of hearty, heavy, “stick to ya bones” kind of food.
This is comfort food without the regret. If comfort food and health food had a love child, it would be this dish right here. It has that hearty, cheesy baked in the oven quality, but still light in a way you won’t feel like you’re walking around with a pit in your stomach, ya know what I mean?
I’m telling you: melted gooey cheese, golden bubbles on top reminiscent of pizza, browned sausage bites… oh yeah, crispy kale, frittata-like eggs, and crunchy spaghetti squash!!! Definitely worth making during these fall and winter months.
Ok, enough with the chit chat, let’s make a Spaghetti Squash Sausage Bake!!
Before you get started, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Start with the spaghetti squash. Cut the ends off so that it can stand up without falling over. Then, cut it in half lengthwise.
Scoop out the seeds. If you have a recipe in mind for the seeds, you can save them for later. Otherwise, discard them, feed the squirrels, whatever. Brush the insides with olive oil and sprinkle with salt.
Place the halves flat-side down on a lined baking pan and roast for 35 minutes.
While the spaghetti squash is in the oven, get the sausage going and cook until brown. Set aside.
Whisk together the eggs, milk, herbs, salt and pepper (hereinafter “egg mixture”). Add the sausage, kale, and cheese to the egg mixture.
When your spaghetti squash is done, you will be able to pull the insides from the skin with a fork. The insides should resemble, well, spaghetti. Remove all the contents of the spaghetti squash and add to the egg mixture.
Finally, you want to mix everything together and empty into your baking dish. I like to grate additional Gruyere on top because… you only live once.
You’ll bake it for 30 minutes at 350 degrees with foil on, then another 10 minutes at 450 degrees with the foil removed.
In the final step, to get that beautiful, browned, bubbly top, throw the broiler on high for 2 minutes. Watch closely during these minutes to make sure things don’t get too crazy. Broiling is a delicate dance.
Remove from oven and let the dish sit for 10 minutes before serving. Then… DIG IN!
Spaghetti Squash Sausage Bake
You’ll love this Spaghetti Squash Sausage Bake as these months get colder. It’s a hearty and filling meal but packed with wholesome, gluten free ingredients.
Ingredients
- 1 medium spaghetti squash
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 14 oz. sausage, cut in rounds ( I like to use sweet Italian sausage)
- 5 eggs
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
- 1 teaspoon sage, chopped
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 cup Gruyere cheese, shredded
- 2 cups kale, chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F.
- Cut the ends off the spaghetti squash and cut in half lengthwise.
- Brush the insides with oil spaghetti squash and sprinkle with sea salt.
- Place the flat side down on a lined baking sheet and roast for 35 minutes.
- After the 35 minutes, flip the spaghetti squash so the flat side is up, and roast for an additional 10 minutes.
- Cook the sausage over medium-high heat until browned. Set aside.
- Combine eggs, milk, herbs, salt and pepper.
- Add the sausage, cheese, kale and spaghetti squash to the egg mixture. Mix to combine.
- Transfer to baking dish and top with cheese.
- Cover loosely with foil and bake for 30 minutes at 350F.
- Remove foil and bake for another 10 minutes at 450F.
- Broil on high and additional 2 minutes until top is golden brown.
- Let sit for 10 minutes before serving.
Tips
- Per serving: Calories 374; Fat 28.8g (Sat 12.4g); Protein 23.6g; Carb 6.1g (net carb 5.5g); Fiber 0.6g; Sodium 859mg
Nutrition Info:
- Serving Size: 8
Let me know what you guys think! xo
Beth says
I’m going to try this with chicken sausage to decrease the fat content a bit, and also use arugula instead of kale as that is what I have on hand from my CSA.
Lindsay Grimes Freedman says
Yum!! Let me know how you like it!! xo
H. Reitz says
I have made this recipe before and loved it!
Question for you: have you ever made this meal and frozen it? Do you think it would freeze well?
Lindsay Grimes Freedman says
Yay! I’m so glad you love it! No, I’ve never frozen it, but I feel like it would lend itself well to freezing! Let me know if you give it a try and how it goes! xo
Stef says
Followed this recipe tonight ALMOST exactly (we didn’t have Gruyere, so we used Monterey Jack instead), and it was AMAZING. The squash added a bit of nutty flavor to the dish that really popped out in the end.
I will say that we had a bit of liquid in the bottom of each bowl, which I guess is to be expected when baking so many veggies that retain water. I think next time I will probably lightly squeeze my squash and kale with cheesecloth or paper towels before baking to try draining out as much moisture as possible.
Lindsay Grimes Freedman says
Hi Stef! Yay! I’m so glad you enjoyed!! xo