Tuesday, November 03, 2009

Tofu Tuesday #31

Tofu Tuesdays
Brought to you by...
Kaci@Ellyphant & Kelli@Gohn Crazy

Tofu Tuesday is the place to share all of your vegetarian secrets. If you have a great recipe to share, a product to rave or rant about, or anything that has made being a vegetarian easier for you please share it. (And vegans of course are welcome too!!) Feel free to grab the little button over there to the right. After you post come back here and link up with your address in the comments. I'm looking forward to reading all your posts!

Baked Spaghetti Squash Lasagna

Prep Time: 30 Min
Cook Time: 1 Hr 15 Min
Ready In: 1 Hr 45 Min

Ingredients

* 1 spaghetti squash, halved lengthwise and seeded
* 1 onion, chopped
* 2 tablespoons minced garlic
* 2 (14 ounce) cans stewed tomatoes
* 1 tablespoon dried basil
* 1 cube vegetable bouillon
* black pepper to taste
* 1 (15 ounce) can black olives, chopped
* 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
* 1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Spray a baking sheet with a thin layer of cooking spray. Place squash halves cut side down on the baking sheet.
2. Bake squash 35 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a knife can be easily inserted. Remove from oven, and cool.
3. Meanwhile, spray a non-stick saucepan with cooking spray. Over medium heat, saute the onion and garlic until golden brown. Stir in tomatoes, basil, bouillon cube, and black pepper. Cook for about 15 minutes, or until you have a medium thick sauce.
4. Remove squash strands with a fork, reserving the shells. Layer each half with a spoonful of the sauce, a layer of spaghetti squash strands, olives, and mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers until shells are full, or until all of the ingredients are used. Top with Parmesan cheese.
5. Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until Parmesan cheese melts.

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The flavor of this dish was really really good, but the spaghetti squash was crunchy and after spending 2 hours on this dinner I ended up eating cereal with my kids. At least The Husband said he liked it crunchy and all. But I did some digging and I found out that it doesn't have to be crunchy...

Bake it in your oven @ 400 degrees for at least 1 & 1/2 hours and up to 2 hours. You want it to actually "bleed" and that only happens when you cook it for a while.

So I may have to attempt this one again and cook the squash a lot longer like this recommends. That's my recommendation to you too. If you don't think you'll like crunchy "noodles" then definitely try cooking it longer. But based on the flavor I totally recommend this recipe! And just look at the presentation. You could definitely use this one as a show-off meal. ;) I took two pictures one out of the oven and the other after I mixed it up so you could get an idea better than topped with cheese.

ENJOY!!

Monday, November 02, 2009

Whimsical Stitches

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I wanted to take a moment to let you know that I just opened my own Etsy shop called Whimsical Stitches. I'm still working at fully stocking it, but there are lots of items up and more coming each day this week. I sew custom personalized blankets, reusable bags, embellished and dyed prefolds and burp cloths. I also crochet and will have a lot of different items including hats, scarves, and headbands. I love custom work and would gladly work with you if you have something in mind that you would like or any of my items in alternate colors or fabrics.

My goal was to have Whimsical Stitches up and officially open by November 1st and I think I made it. This has been a long process. I can't tell you how long I've been saying that I'd like to get an Etsy store up and running, but I did it. I still have to add my embellished/dyed prefolds and burp cloths and then the categories I have things for will be done. I have my first craft show coming up on the 15th so I'll be working at trying to get as much as I can done prior to that show. But I just wanted to take a moment to share it with you all. I hope you'll check it out.