I thought people on the paleo diet didn’t eat spaghetti! Roasted Spaghetti Squash Topped with Sauteed VegetablesTossed with a Fresh Basil Pesto Sauce

Ok so I have to admit I have always been a bit skeptical of people who claim they love Pasta, my question to those people are, what exactly is it about pasta that you love, and if I were to give you a giant bowl of plain pasta would you eat until there was nothing left?

Lets be honest here pasta is bland and tasteless (of course this is my subjective opinion and if you happen to love the plain taste of pasta, then lets just agree to disagree). I believe that the reason people love pasta is because it makes an excellent base for absorbing the flavorful sauce. Honestly pasta is pasta but a great pasta dish is really all about the sauce.

So if were finally on agreement about pasta being useful only as a base then why not try something that absorbs the flavor of sauces just as well as pasta, is in my opinion more flavorful, healthier,  less calories, and paleo approved, why not use spaghetti squash! And since we have agreed that pasta is nothing without it’s sauce the key to making a great dish is to make a flavorful and delicious sauce.

I’ve been craving pesto for quite some time now and although the delicious and aromatic sauce seems to be gaining popularity and popping up all over restaurant menus it’s extremely rare to find a paleo approved pesto sauce on any of these menus. So when my Mom volunteered to bring me a fresh bag of basil straight from my Dad’s garden I was ecstatic, knowing exactly what I would be using that basil for.

I was born into a family of basil lovers, so it was only natural that I too would become a lover of the robust herb. Growing up I remember walking into  the house and seeing tons of basil leaves spread out across our dining room table, sending the aromatic sent of basil wafting throughout the house. My grandfather a passionate gardener would bring over a garbage bag filled with fresh basil leaves which my mom would then use to make pesto with. She would use up all the basil and make several batches  and simply freeze the pesto in small baggies so that we would have have pesto on hand and could easily use it as a moments notice whenever a pesto craving came over us!

In our home pesto has always been much more than a sauce used exclusively for pasta, we used it as a spread for sandwiches, a base for pizzas, a great marinade for chicken and vegetables, we even use it to flavor up sauces, a combination of pesto sauce and fresh tomato sauce makes for one flavorful sauce.

Pesto is an extremely simple thing to make, so it amazes me that people actually go to a grocery store to buy it, in my opinion there is nothing better then  a freshly made pesto sauce accompanied by the amazing aroma of basil  floating through the kitchen as you cook.

Ingredients for roasted Spaghetti Squash

1 spaghetti squash cut length wise with membrane and seeds removed

1 tbsp of olive oil

Ingredients for  Vegetables

1 tbsp of olive oil

2 cups of assorted vegetables cut into bite size pieces (any will do I used a mixture of red peppers and golden squash)

1/2 cup of chopped onion

a pinch of salt pepper

Ingredients for Shrimp

1 1/2 lbs of shrimp

1 1/2 tbsp of olive oil

2 cloves of garlic minced

1 tsp of red pepper flakes

Ingredients for Pesto Sauce

4 cups of  fresh basil

1 cup of dry roasted walnuts, chopped

3 cloves of garlic

1 cup olive oil

1 tsp sea salt

1 1/2 tsp of lemon juice

Method

1) Preheat oven to 350, pour olive oil over the cut side of the spaghetti squash and place cut side down on a baking sheet, roast for 45 minutes until tender, using a fork scrape out spaghetti like pulp into a bowl, set aside

2) While spaghetti squash is roasting add all ingredients for pesto to a food processor,  process until smooth, set aside

3) In a saute pan heat 1 tbsp of olive oil over medium heat, add in onions and saute until translucent, add in vegetables and saute until soft, season with salt and pepper

4) In a separate saute pan add olive oil, add in garlic and red pepper flakes and saute until potent, add in shrimp cook on each side for about three minutes or until shrimp are pink, remove from heat

5) Add spaghetti squash to saute pan with the sauteed vegetables, toss the spaghetti squash and vegetables with pesto sauce, transfer a portion to a plate and top with shrimp!