Sausage Spaghetti Squash Casserole

This week I made a sausage spaghetti squash casserole.

In spite of the crappy photo's it was one of the best dishes I've ever made. It was so popular that within a few minutes the whole pan was just about empty and we had no leftovers. What surprised me was I used a slightly bigger pan then usual and it still had nothing left over.
Sorry about the photo's my camera died right before it was ready and I had to use my cell phone.

A lot of people I know are daunted by squash. They look funny, they seem almost like alien eggs, you don't see them in restaurants a lot so don't know the taste. Although they look difficult they are actually quite easy to prepare and have a nicely mild flavor that goes well with just about any savory spice, meat or vegetable.
For preparation you cut your squash in half and scoop out the middle seeds and stringy bits throwing the innards away. (some people like to grill the seeds with salt and pepper like pumpkin seeds) Place each half of the squash on a pan and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes to an hour. These ones I placed face up on the pan with some butter and sprinkles of rosemary on top so as it baked it would become more savory.
When it is soft enough for a fork to smoothly go through it, take it out of the oven.

You then take the fork and drag it along the sides of the squash pulling down towards yourself. It will pull long stringy bits that look like thin noodles. This is why it is called spaghetti squash and you can make a spaghetti type dish using it.
While the squash is baking I prep the other vegetables. I chopped up very small some zucchini which i peeled, so my picky sister could not tell that there was any in the dish, four mushrooms sliced, carrots cut small so they cook faster, and a quarter of an onion also cut very small. I took a half package of country sausage and using my hands mashed it into very small pieces spread throughout the dish with all the other vegetables, and then added a liberal sprinkling of rosemary, parsley, and black pepper.

As the squash is ready peal the clumps of squash noodles and pile on top of the other vegetables,
spreading so it covers the whole baking dish. I baked this for 30 minutes or until it started to smell ready. You basically want the other vegetables to get tender. Took it out and sprinkled with fresh hand grated Sharp white cheddar cheese and put back in for just long enough to melt the cheese on top.

This was it dished up on the plate. I like this dish without a sauce because you are able to taste the different vegetables and how they blend with the sausage and herbs. A sauce overpowers all the other flavors.

Huge success as even the picky sister had two plates full, and the hubby proclaimed it one of his new favorite dishes. Definitely try it for a hearty and filling meal.