Spaghetti Squash "Lo Mein"

Going low carb? Tired of pasta night? Want something the kids might possibly attempt to eat that does not involve the word "nugget" or "smile" in it? Well, then you might try this. My kids will eat the meatballs and the peas as long as they're still frozen. Everything else, not so much. But you can try.

The Squash

1 spaghetti squash
Canola oil or sunflower oil

Cut the squash in half lengthwise. Don't bother taking out the seeds yet. It's easier once it's cooked. Place it, seed side down, in a large baking dish that's been coated with a little oil and cover it with foil. Pop it in a 375 degree oven for 1 hour. Then forget about it. And I mean that. I often make the squash the night before when I am watching some juicy television show like House or Real Housewives of NYC or even American Greed: Scams, and then I forget to take it out of the oven until after coffee the next day. Really.

The next morning, or when it cools, whichever comes first, take it out of the oven. Scoop the seeds out with a soup spoon. Then use a fork to shred all the strands of squash into a bowl and put it aside until everything else is done.

The Meatballs

1 lb. ground chicken (you can use turkey, but the chicken meatballs come out lighter)
1 egg
2 cups of rice krispies (which you can find behind the Cheerios leftover in the cupboard from that time last summer when you let the kids make rice krispie treats)
2 scallions, chopped
white pepper
ground coriander
chili powder
dried lemongrass
2 T tamari (I use San-J Tamari Wheat Free Soy Sauce. Use what you like.)
Canola or sunflower oil


This is great to make if you've had a lousy day. You get to use your hands to mash up the ground chicken mixture, and you get to use a rolling pin to bash the rice krispies into submission.

Put the cereal in a large ziploc bag and bash it (or roll it gently) with a rolling pin until it looks like matzoh meal. Or you can just use matzoh meal.

Mash all the ingredients together with your hands (don't forget to take your rings off) in a large bowl until it is well mixed. For the spices, I don't measure, I just sprinkle. Probably 1/2 teaspoon per spice, if you must know. If you don't have one of them because, honestly, how often are you gonna use dried lemongrass? ...just omit it. You really only need to use the soy sauce and the white pepper. Yes, you can use black. If you don't have chili powder (which I think is just wrong), you can use a little paprika for color.

Roll them into a zillion 1 inch balls and bake them on an oiled baking pan at 375 degrees for about 15 minutes.

While these are baking you can make the:

The Veggies and Sauce

Canola oil or sunflower oil
1 sliced red bell pepper
1/2 bag of frozen peas (If your kids are like mine, save some uncooked peas for them as a side dish)
3 garlic cloves, run through a garlic press or grated
thumb-sized piece of ginger, very finely minced or grated
1/4 cup tamari (use whatever you used in the meatballs)
1 10 oz. bag of baby spinach or 1/2 head of bok choy
chopped hemp hearts (optional)

Heat a little oil in a 12-inch nonstick pan. Add everything except the tamari and spinach, if you are using it. If you are using bok choy, add it now.  Saute over medium high heat for about 4 minutes.

Add the spinach and the soy sauce.

When spinach is wilted add back in the Spaghetti Squash and toss over the heat for about a minute to coat it with the sauce.  Serve it with the Meatballs.  Garnish with hemp hearts if you like. 


Note about feeding your kids: I am completely incapable of making the right amount of spaghetti. There is always too much. So, whenever I have leftover spaghetti, I toss it with a little oil and freeze it in a Ziploc.  When my kids are hungry and I forgot to cook, I dump it in a pot of boiling water for 2 minutes, just like fresh pasta. It comes in handy when I make spaghetti squash because they won't touch the squash.  They get meatballs, which they gobble up, even my "dairy-tarian" daughter. Then they get plain spaghetti with a little sprinkle cheese on it and a side of still-frozen peas. 


Anyone know how to say "Bon Appetit" in mandarin?