Spaghetti Squash and Turkey Meatballs (GF)

This is one of my go-to comfort food meals, and the best part: it's super healthy. It's so delicious that my husband (the man who doesn't eat healthy foods) loves it. This could fool even the most skeptical critic. The marinara sauce covers the taste of the spaghetti squash so that it tastes exactly like pasta. One of my favorite secrets to making jarred spaghetti sauce taste better is to add a splash of red wine while heating it on the stove. Then I toss it on the spaghetti squash, throw some mozzarella cheese on top, and bake it in the oven so it's cheesy and delicious. The best part is that you can save half the meatballs for another meal later on in the week, like Italian Wedding Soup or as meat in greek gyros.


 


Ingredients:

 FOR MEATBALLS:

1 package lean ground turkey (20 oz.)
2 egg whites 2-3 cloves chopped garlic
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1/4 cup almond meal
1/4 cup finely diced white onion (I used 1 tsp. onion powder because the husband hates onions)
1 tbsp. fresh chopped basil (you can use dried if you like)
1 tsp. garlic granules
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. pepper
dash of cayenne or red pepper flakes

1 whole spaghetti squash
1 jar of organic spaghetti sauce (homemade recipe coming soon)
1/4-1/2 cup fresh cubed or grated mozzarella cheese

 Whisk egg whites and chopped garlic together in a bowl and allow to sit for 15 minutes. In another bowl add turkey, parmesan cheese, almond meal, onion, basil, garlic granules, salt, pepper, cayenne, and egg mixture. Gently mix until just incorporated (you may have to use your hands). Be careful not to over mix, you don't want the turkey to be tough after cooked. You can also add more almond meal if the mixture is too wet.

Roll turkey into 1 1/2 inch balls and set in fridge for an hour. (I do this to allow the ingredients to stick together better, though it's not necessary).

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Carefully cut spaghetti squash in half, drizzle with olive oil or spray with cooking spray, place on baking sheet (cut side facing down), and bake for 30 minutes or until it's tender. Remove and allow to cool.

When the meatballs have set for an hour, cook them on medium heat in a sauté pan, turning every minute or so to ensure that all sides get brown. This should take about 15 minutes or so.

Once the meatballs are cooked through, carefully (and on low heat, to avoid splatter) add the spaghetti sauce, making sure to scrape up any turkey bits from the bottom of the pan - this will make the sauce even tastier. Then, take a fork to the spaghetti squash and scrape away the insides. The squash will start to come apart, thus looking like "spaghetti noodles".

Place the squash noodles in a baking dish, and top with the meatballs and spaghetti sauce. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese (maybe even more parmesan and basil!) and bake at 400 until cheese is melted.