Mexican Baked Spaghetti Squash

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Hi, I used to be a giant yellow oblong vegetable. Just here to change your life. No big deal.

I am told by the functional adult that occupies a very tiny corner of my brain that the holidays and the Super Bowl are both behind us; therefore one is supposed to expand one’s food consumption beyond the basic food groups of Stupidly Decadent Desserts and Appetizers So Filling You Don’t Need Dinner. Are you wondering why you don’t see those food groups here in the food pyramid?

MyPyramid2

Because they’re the foundation. They’re just beneath the surface of that pyramid, holding everything up and making it all structurally sound and permanently marketable no matter what property values do in the rest of the neighborhood. And how much of the glory do they get? Zippy. I honestly think I could subsist on just appetizers and desserts. But that’s the majority (non-functional, non-adult) part of my brain talking. We do need to eat a real dinner occasionally. I guess. And this spaghetti squash has three of the above-ground food groups and is really satisfying and delicious. It’s like lasagna and enchiladas had a very healthy baby together.

Tangent: I think spaghetti squash is SO COOL. Like, you can just cook this vegetable and then scrape out its insides and it magically becomes healthy spaghetti? What kind of voodoo is that? I’ll tell you. It’s nature voodoo, the best kind. I have yet to convince the b/f of this, as he sees the majestic spaguash (as I call it) as something more fit for punting out the window, but that just means more for me.*

*not kidding. It took six days but I ate the entire pan.

mexican baked spaghetti squash

4.5 from 4 reviews
Mexican Baked Spaghetti Squash
 
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Category: Main Dish
Yield: yields 6-8 normal person servings, or be like me and eat the whole thing over a week.
Ingredients
  • 1 spaghetti squash
  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, sliced thin
  • 1 red bell pepper, diced
  • 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 Tbsp chili powder
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • ½ tsp cumin
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
  • 1 can tomatoes with green chilis, drained
  • ½ cup nonfat greek yogurt
  • 1 cup reduced-fat shredded cheddar cheese, divided
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Lightly spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.
  2. Cut spaghetti squash in half and remove the seeds with a spoon. Place the halves in a microwave-safe dish and cover. Cook for 14-16 minutes until easily pierced with a knife and inner flesh is easy to remove.
  3. While the spaghetti squash is cooking, heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onions, bell pepper and jalapeno and cook until softened and onion is translucent, about five minutes.
  4. Add garlic and cook for two minutes. Stir in chili powder, oregano, and cumin and cook for one minute, stirring constantly.
  5. Transfer from the skillet to a large bowl. Stir in black beans, corn, tomatoes, yogurt, and half the cheese.
  6. When spaghetti squash is done, allow to cool for five minutes. Use a fork to remove the long strands from the inside of the squash. Add the squash to the bowl with the rest of the ingredients and stir well to combine.
  7. Transfer to baking dish and top with the rest of the cheese. Cook, uncovered, for 30-35 minutes, until bubbling and cheese is golden brown.

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42 Responses to Mexican Baked Spaghetti Squash

  1. Very cool recipe! I have a spaghetti squash I’ve been meaning to use. I’m going to try it with chicken and layering each ingredient like lasagna.

    • Alex, You can also cut the spaghetti squash in half, remove the seeds, then sprinkle some olive oil inside an out and grate some fresh garlic in the halves. Bake on 350 degrees with the cut sides down, approx 40 minutes. After the squash cools use a fork to pull out the strands and toss with a little more olive oil and grate an aged hard parmesan or other hard sharp cheese and mix.

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  4. I made this yesterday! I didn’t have black beans so I used garbanzo beans. Turned out very yummy! Creative way to use spaghetti squash. 🙂

  5. Julie,
    This recipe looks awesome! I want to try it tonight. What are your thoughts on if I wanted to add some ground turkey? What would you suggest for spice measurements?? Thanks!

    • Hi there, I don’t eat meat so I honestly have no idea how to cook it or factor it into my recipes, sorry! I would guess you’d need to up the spices – I’d add maybe an extra 50% of each.

  6. Made this on 09/03/2013. It was delicious! My picky boyfriend and two picky children (12 & 10) both LOVED it, so it was definitely a winner. The one thing I’d love is a bit more crunch with it, thinking some chips served along side, but it was amazing as is.

  11. […] Mexican Baked Spaghetti Squash – Here’s a nice casserole-style dish that will feed the whole family, while keeping things healthy and tasty. The use of spaghetti squash as the central theme means you’re leaving out beef or pork that would greatly add to the fat content. They have reduced-fat cheese, so you’re covered there, and the whole dish is baked, one of the healthier ways to cook. […]

  12. Just a tiny little nit-picking comment: Super Bowl isn’t until February. The recipe,however,looks spot-on!

    • LOL, this post is actually from right after the Super Bowl last year. I think some other site just picked it up recently 🙂

  13. I wouldnt micro wave the squash, that kills all the nutrients from it. But cant wait to put a vegan twist on this.

    • I do microwave just because it’s quick – but any cooking method will work, of course. Let me know how the vegan version turns out!

  14. Ready to make this a second time! Hubby and I loved it! De-lish!! Question though…..If I wanted to add ground turkey, how much and should I brown it first? Thanks!

    • Hi Marie – Glad you liked it! I’m a vegetarian so I really couldn’t tell you how much to add and how to cook it. This has been asked a few times in the comments, so maybe someone who’s tried it can chime in and let you know what they did to add in meat.

      • Hi Marie, I have tried the ground turkey and I would cook it first, along with your herbs/spices. Always play it safe first, all ground meats should be cooked first. I’m a mother of three grown daughters and Nanny to six grandchildren and no one has ever gotten sick from my cooking. I hope I have answered your question Marie. Nanny Dee.

  15. This was a great recipe!! I had a crown of broccoli in the fridge and one vegetarian sausage link that I wanted to use up so I added it into the recipe as well. It was absolutely delicious!!! The doubled the recipe, but only used one jalapeno and it was just enough heat. Thank you for this great recipe!

  16. I’ve been trying to eat vegetarian for a couple of months now. I’d never had spaghetti squash before, but I like everything else in this recipe, so I made it tonight.

    My husband and I both LOVED it! One change I made was using sour cream instead of yogurt. We’re adding this casserole to our dinner repertoire. And now I can’t wait to try spaghetti squash in other ways!

    Thank you very much for sharing this recipe!

    • Hi Paula, I’m sorry, I don’t really keep track of that anymore – but you can plug in the ingredients on MyFitnessPal or SparkPeople and that should give you an accurate count.

  18. Hi

    Thanks for the recipe! We made it last night. I didn’t have any corns or jalepeno, but we did have a can of chiles in adobo sauce which i blended with the yogurt. It came out nice and spicey. I also probably used a little extra cheese 🙂

    Great recipe! We’ll probably do some homemade guac on the side next time!

    • Hi Dejee, I stopped tracking nutritionals a while back so I don’t know the exact carbs – you should be able to plug the ingredients into MyFitnessPal or SparkPeople to get an accurate count.

  21. […] Mexican Baked Spaghetti Squash – Here’s a nice casserole-style dish that will feed the whole family, while keeping things healthy and tasty. The use of spaghetti squash as the central theme means you’re leaving out beef or pork that would greatly add to the fat content. They have reduced-fat cheese, so you’re covered there, and the whole dish is baked, one of the healthier ways to cook. […]

  22. […] 35. Mexican Baked Spaghetti Squash – Here’s a nice casserole-style dish that will feed the whole family, while keeping things healthy and tasty. The use of spaghetti squash as the central theme means you’re leaving out beef or pork that would greatly add to the fat content. They have reduced-fat cheese, so you’re covered there, and the whole dish is baked, one of the healthier ways to cook. […]

  23. This was my first try at cooking spaghetti squash and your recipe was a big win with the family! The dish is tasty and so pretty. Thank you so much!