Shortcut Bolognese with Spaghetti Squash

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Shortcut Bolognese with Spaghetti Squash | Reclaiming Yesterday

This might not come as life-changing info, but spaghetti squash is an amazing substitute for pasta.

It has a texture and consistency that begs to be topped with your favorite pasta sauce. Will you miss the pasta that you swap out for spaghetti squash? In my opinion, no.

Will you miss the carb coma that comes from a huge plate of spaghetti? Again, I’m leaning in the “no” direction. 

This shortcut bolognese with spaghetti squash is my favorite clash of healthy and convenient. 

The secret weapon here is a good quality jarred marinara sauce. It doesn’t have to be super fancy. What I look for is a reasonably short list of ingredients and specifically, a jar without:

  • added sugar, or 
  • processed oils like soybean or canola

(those ingredients can cause inflammation so I try to avoid them). 

I look for jarred marinara made with olive oil, but sometimes I will get a fat-free sauce and then add my own healthy fats in at home. 

Shortcut Bolognese with Spaghetti Squash | Reclaiming Yesterday

So you’ve probably figured out that a good jarred marinara is where the shortcut happens. You just pop the top and that step is settled. 

But the second, less obvious secret to this shortcut is having spaghetti squash already cooked and ready to go. You can do that by roasting a spaghetti squash (or 2) at the beginning of the week, or even microwaving the squash instead of roasting.

A NOTE ON SQUASH NOODLES: I usually cut my squash in half lengthwise, but you can get longer, more “spaghetti like” strands if you cut it short ways. 

Choice is yours. 

Shortcut Bolognese with Spaghetti Squash | Reclaiming Yesterday

Because we love veggies—the way they fill us up, supply us with nutrients, and look pretty on our plates—we’re going to add some of those into our shortcut bolognese sauce. 

I like to use garlic, zucchini, and carrots, but you can also add onions, mushrooms, spinach, kale, etc. Go veggie wild. 

Shortcut Bolognese with Spaghetti Squash | Reclaiming Yesterday

The veggies also serve to stretch your high quality meat a little bit further. 

I usually use grass-fed beef for bolognese (there’s a few packs frozen in my chest freezer at any given time). But this time I thought I’d mix it up and go with some grass-fed ground bison from US Wellness Meats

If you’ve never tried bison, you should! It has a mild flavor that’s not at all gamey. It’s pretty low in fat, so I like to brown it up with bacon grease that I collect and keep in a container in the fridge.

Shortcut Bolognese with Spaghetti Squash | Reclaiming Yesterday

So, steps for shortcut bolognese are as follows: 

  1. Brown your beef. (if you’re using grass-fed, you won’t have to drain it) Transfer to another dish for a quick second and…
  2. Saute up your veg. Add the beef back to the pan and…
  3. Stir in your time-saving jar of marinara. 

Shortcut Bolognese with Spaghetti Squash | Reclaiming Yesterday

Then you just let everyone mix and mingle for about 5 minutes.

And you proudly scoop your shortcut bolognese over nature’s simplest pasta substitute. 

Oh spaghetti squash, how much do we love you?

Shortcut Bolognese with Spaghetti Squash | Reclaiming Yesterday

Top it with some good quality grated parm (if that’s an option for you). 

Maybe sprinkle with a few crushed red pepper flakes…

Shortcut Bolognese with Spaghetti Squash | Reclaiming Yesterday

And twirl. Like you mean it! 

This is pasta night that loves you back. 

Shortcut Bolognese with Spaghetti Squash | Reclaiming Yesterday

So enjoy every bite knowing that you’re giving your body some seriously wholesome fuel. 

Shortcut Bolognese with Spaghetti Squash | Reclaiming Yesterday

And bask in knowing that this delicious weeknight dinner came together in no time at all. 

Shortcut Bolognese with Spaghetti Squash | Reclaiming Yesterday

Seriously, what will you do with all that extra time??

Shortcut Bolognese with Spaghetti Squash | Reclaiming Yesterday



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