Recipe: Spaghetti Squash with Tomatos

I have discovered a new vegetable: Spaghetti Squash. This is the recipe that came with it. I tweaked it and made it my own.


I was excited to see in the 112F degree weather of Phoenix that I wouldn't have to turn on my oven!
Here is my version of the recipe. I only had a 1/4 of a squash so I paired it down., plus there are only two of us so that's all I needed to make.

Making the "Pasta"

Scoop out the seeds, then microwave the squash on a plate covered with plastic wrap that has been poked a few times with a fork. It should take about 4-6 minutes. I tested it by poking the flesh to feel if it was soft and squishy, like cooked squash should be. Then take a fork and rake it through the flesh of the squash, against the grain (the long axis). It will create strands that look like angel hair pasta. Portion out the 'pasta' onto plates.

The Sauce

Tomatoes (amount as needed)
Onion, chopped (small amount proportional to the the tomatoes & how much you like onions)
Garlic (same as onions)
Pesto Sauce, just a touch as pesto sauce has very strong flavors (or finely chopped fresh basil)
Salt & Pepper (a dash each)
Cheese, preferably feta, but Parmesan will work just fine

Dice the tomatoes and remove the seeds, but use the juice, mix with the onion, garlic, pesto sauce, salt & pepper. Just add the ingredients in proportions that are according to your family's preferences, for example my husband and & love garlic so I will add more than most people. Microwave the chunky mixture until warm. (1-2 minutes). Spoon the sauce over the pre-portioned 'pasta' then pour the juices over the top so it can soak down into the squash.

Top with cheese, serve, & enjoy!

Note: after making this we realized that a 1/4 of a squash was not all that filling and didn't have much substance. Next time I will break angel hair pasta into lengths the same as the squash strands, cook it, and mix the two together.

Cross Stitch Progress

I just realized that I didn't update my progress last month. Oh well, as you can see not much has changed. I hope to get more done now that summer and days over 105F are here. I will be spending lots of time indoors plopped in front of the TV catching up on my shows.

Wordless Wednesday - My New Guitar & Amp

Home Improvement: Re-upholstering Chairs

This weekend I have been working on a simple home improvement project: re-upholstering my dinning room chairs. It has taken me this long to do it because I was waiting for the fabric to go on sale. Upholstery fabric is expensive. For example, the particular pattern I liked was originally $34.99 per yard! Finally I stuck gold. Joanne Fabrics had a 50% off sale and I had a 10% coupon on top of that! So I got 2 yards for less than the price of one :)

Enough about my frugal conquest, on to the project. We got this dinning room set for free from a good family friend in college and we carted it with us to Arizona. I finally have a dinning room and bought a rug to go with my color scheme. Unfortunately medium blue and dark green do not go together as you can see:

Before



After

Isn't it pretty! I like having a home filled with pretty things that actually match, much to my husband's chagrin. Interestingly, I found this original pink silk under the green re-covering:

I wonder how old it is?

Cross Stitch Update

I know I know, It's been 6 months since I posted about my cross stitch. With the Holidays, and moving, and my camera breaking, and having to hunt around for a good deal on a new one, not to mention not having much time to actually sew, progress has been slow. I have however set a goal of finishing this thing by then end of 2009 AND finishing at least 3 quilt blocks by the end of the year. Ambitious I know!

You can see how far along I was 6 months ago here