Caprese Spaghettie Squash

It may officially be fall, but the weather sure is still making its full transition. Even on the warmest of fall days, I have found myself craving comfort food. I have also found myself craving easy weeknight meals.. This recipe for caprese spaghetti squash is the perfect transitional meal from summer to fall. 

One of the best parts about this recipe is that it only requires 2 baking sheets, making for very easy cleanup! The other amazing thing is that you can roast the tomatoes in the oven at the same time as the sphaghetti squash. I love a good time saving recipe :)

Once everything is roasted, it is time to assemble the sphaghetti squash. I scrapped all of the spaghetti squash "noodles" out of the shell, sprinkled it with salt, and mixed it with marinara sauce. I placed the spaghetti squash "noodles" back into the shell and layered it with the oven roasted tomatoes, fresh basil leaves, mozzerella and parmesan cheese. 

When I pulled them out of the oven, I sprinkled them with fresh basil and topped them with pine nuts. You could also add some additional cheese or any other toppings you'd like to them.

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we did!

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Caprese Sphaghetti Squash Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 medium spaghetti squash, cut and half and cleaned out
• 1/2 pint cherry tomatoes 
• 1 cup marinara sauce (more or less, depending on your preference)
• 1/3 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped (plus more for garnish)
• 6 thick slices fresh mozzerella cheese 
• 2 Tbs. parmesan cheese
• 2 Tbs. olive oil
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 
2.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or grease with olive oil or cooking spray. 
3. With a sharp knife, carefully cut spaghetti squash in half lengthwise. With a spoon, gently remove seeds and discard. Place spaghetti squash cut side down on baking sheet. Bake for 45 minutes or until a fork can pierce the shell easily.
4. Place the tomatoes on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with the salt. During the last half of the squash cooking time, place the tomatoes in the oven and roast for approximately 20 minutes, until the tomatoes are shrivelled. Set aside.
5.  Remove both the squash and the tomatoes from the oven. When the squash is just cool enough to touch, flip the squash over.  Turn the oven to broil.
6. With a fork, loosen and separate spaghetti squash strands from shell. Reserve shells.
7. Place strands in a bowl. Mix strands with  salt (don't skip this step), and pasta sauce. Adjust the amount of sauce you use based on your own preference. Spoon mixture back into the empty shell. 
8. Sprinkle half of the fresh basil leaves and half of the cherry tomatoes on each squash half. Grate the parmesan cheese over top and top each side with 3 slices of the mozzarella cheese.
9. Broil for 3-4 minutes or until the cheese starts to melt. Top with additional basil (optional) and pine nuts. Serve and enjoy!

Grilled Cheese Sandwhich with Spinach and Prosciutto

As the seasons begin to transition, so do our cravings. Popsicles are replaced with warm baked goods, the BBQ is replaced with the slow cooker, and salads are replaced with warm sandwiches.  Sandwiches like this grilled cheese with spinach and prosciutto. 

The inspiration for this grilled cheese sandwich came from my recent trip to the farmers market. It felt like Fall was in the air (at least for the day) and I stumbled upon this gorgeous loaf of freshly baked sourdough bread that was just begging me to take it home. Being that my husband absolutely loves carbs in all forms, I knew he would be excited when I brought it home, let alone my plans for it. 

I picked up a fresh bag of spinach, and added my other two favorite ingredients of cheese and prosciutto and this made for a seriously amazing grilled cheese sandwich! The best grilled cheese sandwich I've ever had kind of amazing.

In my opinion, the key to a good grilled cheese sandwich (besides the gooey cheese) is good quality bread and butter. My favorite recent addition to my grilled cheese sandwich is topping them off with maldon salt. One of my girlfriends told me this secret and my grilled cheese sandwiches will never be the same. It takes them to a whole new level, you have got to try it!

When my husband and I were indulging in these for dinner, we were talking about how amazing these will be dunked in soup this winter. A nice creamy tomato or chicken broth based soup would be amazing in addition to these sandwiches.

The next time you're craving comfort food, are feeding a crowd or need something to dunk into your soup be sure to add this to your list- and don't forget the salt! 

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Grilled Cheese Sandwich with Spinach and Prosciutto

Ingredients:

• 2 slices (1/2 inch thick) rustic white bread
• 3 oz. shredded mozzerella cheese (or other white cheese)
• 6 fresh baby spinach leaves
• 1-2 paper-thin slices of prosciutto
• Butter
• Maldon salt

Directions:

1. Spread butter on the bottom and top half of the bread. Place a handful of the shredded cheese atop one of the slices of bread. Add the slices of prosciutto and spinach. Add the remaining handful of shredded cheese. Top with the second slice of bread, butter side up. 
2. Grease a cast iron skillet liberally with butter over medium heat. Grill the sandwich until the cheese has melted, about 4-5 minutes per side. Top with maldon salt and serve immediately and enjoy.