SPAGHETTI SQUASH WITH PORTOBELLO AND KALE

This is a beautiful fall dish with a tasty roasted mini spaghetti squash tossed with sauteed portobello mushroom caps, onion and farm fresh kale.  This one captures the essence of why we joined the CSA, to force us out of our comfort zone and to try new things...very much worth the time and effort on this one.  Very hearty with quality calories.


Recipe from this weeks CSA Newsletter
1 large spaghetti squash
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, diced
2 portobello caps, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 bunch kale, coarsely chopped
2 teaspoons basil
1 1/2 teaspoons oregano
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese




Be careful cutting these squashes, they are very dense so the chances of the knife slipping out increase, no worry, just be careful and slowly cut the squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds.  Season with olive oil and generous salt and fresh cracked pepper.

Squash goes into the oven at 400 for 40 minutes...until a fork easily pierces the flesh...pull them out, let cool and prep the rest of the dish.

Snap the stems off of the portos and brush them clean with a...well...a brush.  Can't wash mushrooms, they get all soggy and messed up, just give them a brush and in this case a dice.

Get the onions going with some olive oil for about  6-8 minutes...little salt, little pepper, until golden, then add your mushrooms and garlic for about 2-3 minutes...a little salt, little pepper and finally add your kale and herbs...oh yea...little salt, little pepper, built those flavors baby.

The kale takes a while to wilt down...I think it was over 15 minutes...this is all over medium to medium low heat...let things work out...stir occasionally.

Half cup of freshly grated parmigiano reggiano to help every thing bind up nicely.

Now that the squash has cooled, you can make your spaghetti strands by taking a fork and scraping long full strokes through the flesh into a bowl...

Add your kale mushroom mixture to the bowl with the spaghetti, top with parm and toss thoroughly.

The mushrooms add a really nice earthy flavor.  This meal was a surprise at how deep the flavors developed during the process.  Raw kale is a little bitter and tough...once cooked it is still bold, but sweeter and much more tender.  Enjoy!