Spaghetti Squash With Chickpeas And Kale

I’ve been craving pizza lately. So what else is new?

Your eyes are not deceiving you. There is no pizza going on here today. Womp womp. I ate so much food over Labor Day weekend so I thought I’d be really healthy this past weekend. So I woke up Saturday morning and went to my kickboxing class and then I ate healthy all day, including this delicious spaghetti squash meal.

Sunday was a different story. I stayed in my pajamas all day and ate like crap. I guess you win some and you lose some. It’s a good thing that my spaghetti squash came with some ultra healthy kale. It’s also a good thing that I at least won a little.

Have you ever roasted spaghetti squash? It’s so cool how it starts off looking like any other squash and then it turns into something that looks like spaghetti. In fact, you could add Marinara or Italian Meat Sauce to spaghetti squash and it would make for a great low carb Italian meal. Just think of what you would eat with pasta and you could probably do the same with spaghetti squash.

It took very little time to whip up the kale and chickpeas. Word to the wise, though. The spaghetti squash takes about an hour in the oven so don’t wait until you’re hungry to start cooking this meal.

What healthy and delicous meals have you made lately? I’m always looking to try something new.

Spaghetti Squash with Chickpeas and Kale Recipe
(about 2 servings)

Ingredients:

1 spaghetti squash
2 tablespoons oil, divided per the directions
1 shallot, sliced thinly
1/2 tablespoon rosemary, minced
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 cup chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 bunch of kale, stems removed and rough chopped
juice of 1/2 a lemon
salt and pepper, to taste
1/4 cup slivered almonds
Parmesan cheese, grated

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
To prepare the spaghetti squash, slice it in half lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds and pulp from the middle. Place the squash on a baking sheet, cut side up. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Bake the spaghetti squash for about 1 hour or until the flesh is tender.
Remove squash from the oven and let it cool enough to be able to touch it. Use a fork to scrape the squash into strands.
In a large skillet over Medium heat, add the other 1 tablespoon of oil.
Add the shallot. Season with the rosemary, crushed red pepper, a sprinkle of salt and pepper and cook until the shallot starts to soften.
Add in the chickpeas and cook for a few minutes, until they turn lightly golden brown.
Add in the minced garlic and cook for about 1 minute.
Add in the kale and then the lemon juice, and stir. Cook until the kale starts to wilt.
Add in the spaghetti squash strands and stir everything together.
Remove from heat and top with the almonds and grated Parmesan cheese.