Spaghetti Squash with Zucchini and Tomatoes

Spaghetti Squash. I swear that skin is impenetrable

I've been wanting to try something new with all the winter squash in abundance at the farmer's market, so S's sharing of a spaghetti squash recipe from True Food Kitchen was a timely recommendation. I altered the cheese used in the recipe as well as the ingredient proportions. As soon as I started on the recipe however, I remembered how much I dislike working with squash because they are so impossible to open! I tried using brute force with a cleaver as well as various kitchen knives (at the peril of my fingertips), but just could not slice it lengthwise no matter how much force I used. Upon S's suggestion, I ended up poking the thing all over with a carving fork and cooking the entire thing in a sheet pan filled with water at 375 degrees for 30 minutes, until it was soft enough to slice open. The casserole turned out to be quite good; it's hard not to like anything baked with lots of cheese, but it was a nice fall / winter dish with good texture from the squash and zucchini, moisture from the tomatoes, and lots of flavor with all the cheese. A little time consuming with the various steps (and pots and pans to wash), but a good side dish to our roast chicken tonight.

After roasting it whole at 375 degrees for half an hour, I was able to slice the squash lengthwise and scoop out all the seeds and stringy stuff around the seeds. I seasoned it with a little salt, pepper and olive oil, and placed it cut side down on a foil lined baking sheet and baked it for 25 minutes at 425 degrees until it looked like this. Let it cool for 20 minutes before handling.

This was the fun part. When the spaghetti squash is cooked, as you scrape it with a spoon, it turns into noodley threads.

While the squash is cooking / cooling, fine dice 1/2 onion and 2 cloves of garlic and saute in a little oil over medium heat for about 8 minutes, seasoned with a little salt and pepper, and remove into a bowl. Grate 1 zucchini and measure out two cups of diced tomatoes and combine in the bowl. Combine with the scooped out spaghetti squash, 1/3 cup of parmesan, salt and pepper and mix thoroughly

Scoop the mixture into the pan, top with 1/2 cup of grated gruyere / comte, 1 ball of buffalo mozzarella, cubed, and more parmesan. Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes until bubbly and brown on top