TEST

Probably one of the best things about summer coming to an end is the arrival of squash and pumpkins! There's just something about the colors of your food matching the colors of fall that has always appealed to me. It wasn't until very recently I discovered how delicious these colorful vegetables can actually be. My dad started growing yellow squash and zucchini years ago and a few months ago he gave me a bunch of each. At first, I had no idea what to do with them so they just sort of...sat there on my kitchen counter. I eventually I used them in some Summer Tian and suddenly, I was craving squash like, all the time.

When I heard of spaghetti squash, I'll admit I was skeptical. I knew it was something my mom ate frequently but I had never really enjoyed it - most likely this was because she ate it with very little seasoning and just regular spaghetti sauce, which in my opinion, destroyed the taste. After successfully making (and loving!) the summer tian, I decided it was time to expand my horizons to different types of squash. Since then, I have made my spaghetti squash and 'meat' balls several times, but today I captured the process on film - quite a rare achievement, almost like filming Bigfoot. 

I'm not sure if there is a huge difference between Hasta la Pasta Squash and regular spaghetti squash aside from the color - though it did seem that the Hasta la Pasta squash had a little more internal moisture than a regular spaghetti squash. The recipe works for either however. The best part about squash is that, provided you keep them in a cool, dry place, they can last weeks, even months, before you use them. Even better: they are super cheap!

You Ready for THIS!?

What You'll Need:

For the "Spaghetti"

• 1 Spaghetti or Hasta la Pasta squash
• 2 Teaspoons Garam Marsala
• 2 Teaspoons Coriander

For the Potato/Veggie "Meat" Balls

• 2 Red Skin Potatoes, julienned
• Slightly less than 1/4 Cup Carrots, chopped
• 1/4th of a Red Onion, chopped
• Small head of Broccoli, chopped
• 2 Tablespoons Garlic, minced or pressed
• 1 Tablespoon Fresh Oregano 
• 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 1/4 Cup Panko
• 1/2 Cup Plain or Italian Seasoned Breadcrumbs
• Sea Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper, as desired

For the Sauce (mine was frozen from a previous batch, so no "how-to" pictures here, sorry!!)

• 1 Cup Parsley
• 1 Cup Basil
• 1/4 Cup Feta Cheese
• 1/4 Cup freshly grated Parmesean Cheese
• 1 Tablespoon Garlic
• 3 Heaping Tablespoons of Almonds (or Pine Nuts)
• 2 Tablespoons Heavy Cream (or milk)
• 1/4 Cup Olive Oil
• 1 Tablespoon Red Pepper Flakes
• Touch of Salt

Tools You'll Find Helpful

• Bamboo Skewers - or equivalent to poke some holes
• Hammer - I used the flat side of my meat tenderizer, but a regular hammer will do

Let's Get Cookin'!

There are a few different ways you can approach cooking a whole spaghetti squash but most methods require that you poke a few holes in it first to prevent it from exploding while it cooks.

Using my hammer and a bamboo skewer, I gently tapped the skewer through the top layer of skin. You do not want to drive the skewer (or whatever you are using to make your holes) all the way through the squash, just go about an inch down. I recommend poking at least 3 holes in your squash, just to be safe.

Like I said, there are a couple different methods you can approach when it comes to actually cooking your squash. The quick method, which I do not prefer, is to cook your squash in the microwave for 10-12 minutes. But because we have quite a bit of other things to do before we can enjoy our squash, I highly recommend using your oven! Preheat to 400 F and lay your squash, hole side up, on a pan lined with aluminum foil and bake for 40-50 minutes.

While your squash cooks, it's time to start on the 'meat' balls. Though I suppose since they are meatless, I can't really call them that...but Potato Balls sounds awkward - like some sort of sexually transmitted Irish disease...

Anyways, julienne your potatoes into thin slices. I used my mandolin slicer at 1/8th inch with the smallest teeth to achieve this. Here's a helpful video on how to julienne potatoes if you do not have a mandolin slicer to assist you. Regardless of what method you use to julienne your potatoes, you want them to be as thin as possible, otherwise they will not easily turn into balls (heehee! .......I'm immature).

Next you'll want to chop your onions, carrots, and broccoli into small cubes. Again, the smaller and thinner you can cut them, the better. I used my onion chopper to get my veggies all the same size; it's one of the most useful gadgets I have in my kitchen!

Toss all your veggies into a medium bowl and add the olive oil and garlic. Stir until all bits are have a nice oily coating, then add your panko and breadcrumbs. I recommend adding about 1/4 cup at a time until you reach a consistency that will hold together when formed into a ball. If you add too much, add a tiny bit more oil to get to the proper texture.

Time to get your hands dirty! 

Use the palms of your hands to form small potato balls. It may take a couple tries before you get it just right - adjust the amount of breadcrumbs or oil until they easily clump together. I believe the batch I made yielded about 15 potato balls. 

Obviously, since I am cooking for myself tonight, I do not need nearly that many but the great thing about these things are they freeze really well. So next time I get my hands on a spaghetti squash, all I will have to do is fry them up!

That being said, add a tablespoon of olive oil to a pan over medium high heat. Once you are ready to drop your balls (LOLZ!), turn the heat down to medium high to prevent burning. Use tongs to occasionally turn to ensure each side is crisped up evenly.

While my potato balls were frying, I started to thaw the feta pesto sauce. 

PRO TIP: Freeze your left over sauces in ice cube trays for quickly thaw-able single sauce servings! Thanks for the advice Reddit!

This sauce is from probably a month or so ago when I last made spaghetti squash. It was pretty easy to make, if I remember correctly. Essentially, make a pesto from the parsley and basil by using a blender to combine the herbs with 1/4 cup olive oil. Once the pest reaches a liquid-like state, add in the feta cheese, grated Parmesan, garlic, almonds, and red pepper flakes. Blend again until combined into a thick, delicious smelling sauce. Then pour into a pan over medium low heat and bring to a simmer. Right before serving, add in a few tablespoons of heavy cream and stir. It's that easy!

Around this time, your squash is probably cooked to completion. As I pulled mine out of the oven, a single tear ran down from one of the holes, as if the squash was so thankful to be a part of such a wonderful meal.

Remove the squash an allow to cool for about 10 minutes before trying to handle it. That sucker will be HOT! (Hot as what you say? Hot as...balls. lololol)

Your potato balls should also be sufficiently browned by this point as well. 

DAT CRISP

Use a sharp knife to cut the squash in half length wise. You way want to let it cool for a few more minutes before proceeding. Or don't, burn yourself, see if I care.

Then take a pair of tongs and scoop out all the seeds. They won't be too deep in the flesh, so make sure you don't scoop out a lot of the squash as you do this.

Holding the squash with an oven mitt, use a fork to scrape out all the stringy squashy goodness.

Unfortunately, and I'm not sure if this is just because Hasta la Pasta Squashes are slightly different and contain more moisture than a regular yellow spaghetti squash, mine wasn't as stringy as I would have liked. Still tasted the same, just..not like the pasta I was expecting. 

 In the same pan you used to cook the potato balls, continue cooking the squash until most of the moisture is gone and the strands are just starting to become crispy. While its cooking, season it with the Garam Marsala and Coriander. Toss on a pinch of salt and pepper as well if you so please!

And there you have it folks, delicious spaghetti squash and potato balls with a spicy feta pesto sauce!

If you used a regular yellow spaghetti squash, your 'pasta' will look a little more like real spaghetti, as seen in this picture I posted to Instagram a few months back. #YUM

Recipe TL;DR

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour and 10 minutes

Preheat Oven to 400 F

1. Begin by poking several holes into the top of your spaghetti squash. Place on an aluminum lined pan in preheated oven for 40-50 minutes. QUICK METHOD: Poke holes and heat in microwave for 10-12 minutes. Keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn't explode!
2. Wash red skin potatoes and proceed to julienne into 1/8inch slices. Chop your onions, carrots, and broccoli into small cubes. Place all into a medium sized bowl.
3. Cover vegetables with 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Add in garlic, oregano, and salt/pepper. Slowly, about 1/4 cup at a time, add in the panko and breadcrumbs. Stir until combined and clumps begin to form.
4. Using your hands, roll mixture into small balls. Too thick and they won't cook all the way through, too thin and they will become too crispy. Try to find a happy medium.
5. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a medium pan over high heat. Reduce to medium heat right before adding the potato balls. Place potato balls into pan and use tongs to rotate until all sides are browned. Reserve oil in the pan for later use.
6. Make the pesto sauce by blending together the basil and pesto with 1/4 cup olive oil until creamy. Add in feta cheese, Parmesan cheese, garlic, almonds, and red pepper flakes and pulse until the chunks are blended in. 
7. Pour sauce into small pan and bring to a simmer for 5-7 minutes. Add in heavy cream, stir, and remove from heat.
8. Remove squash from oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Slice in half and remove seeds. Use a fork to scrape the squash into strings.
9. Place squash into the pan with the reserved oil over medium high heat. Season with Garam Marsala and Coriander. Add pinch of sea salt and fresh ground pepper. Cook until moisture is mostly gone (if using Hasta la Pasta Squash) and the strings are starting crisp, but not brown.
10. Pour sauce over potato balls and squash, serve and enjoy!

Since it's autumn and all, why not have some Caramel Apple Pie Cookies for dessert? Might as well go with the fall theme here, right????

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Banana Sushi

Ingredients

• 1 Banana
• 1/2 Peanut Butter

Cooking Directions

1. COOK IT