Spaghetti Squash Casserole

   So, I'm still away visiting family, and I didn't even remember that today was Monday! I'm sitting here chatting with my Mom, and I had to ask her what day it was! We were visiting other family 40 minutes away from our "visiting home base" of my Mom & Dad's, and we only rolled in around 3am....so, yikes, I'm a little pooped!  
   Anyway, I wrote this draft about a week ago, but was busy making (and posting) Easter treats and didn't post this! So, lets take a step back from all that sugar from last week, and make a healthy-ish casserole. I know "casserole season" is coming to an end, but I eat spaghetti squash a lot, and was getting a little tired of it in a bowl with sauce and needed something different, gosh darn it! 

Spaghetti Squash Casserole

Ingredients

• 1 large spaghetti squash 
• 1 pound italian sausage or ground meat (you'll need extra spices if you use regular ground meat)
• 1/2 yellow onion, diced
• 1 cup pasta sauce (no sugar added)
• 1/2 Cup chopped mushrooms
• 1 jalepeno, diced (optional, but you know you wanna...)
• 1 teaspoon dried basil (and the same amount of dried garlic, paprika, sage or oregano if using regular ground meat)
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 3 eggs, whisked (in a large bowl)
• Olive oil to use here and there
• Also optional: Diced peppers, tomatoes,  mushrooms, and shredded cheese for the top.  

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Cut spaghetti squash in half lengthwise (don't chop any fingers off in the process! Spaghetti squashes can be buggers to cut open!). Scrap out the seeds.
3. Drizzle the squash with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place spaghetti squash cut side down on a baking sheet and bake until tender, for 45-50 minutes. Remove from oven, and reduce oven heat to 350 degrees F.
4. While that's baking, place a large pan over medium heat. Add onion, and cook until it starts to get a little colour, about 3-5 minutes. Add the italian sausage (or other ground meat). Cook, breaking up bigger pieces, until no more pink shows.
   
5. Add sauce, dried basil (and other spics, if using) and salt and pepper. Stir it up, and remove it from heat.
6. In the large bowl with the whisked eggs, add the meat mixture. Stir well. Then scrape the squash threads into the bowl, and mix well. Put this mixture into a 8x8 baking pan.
7. Place in oven and bake for 1 hour, and the top seems firm and the casserole "springs" a little when you poke it with your finger. Add shredded cheese if you want for the last 5 minutes of baking. 
8. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.

   So, I had planned on making this, but forgot and used my sausages a night or two before. I had other ground meat options, but because I had made more sausages than we needed, I decided I would just cut up the cooked sausages and use them. So, fyi, that's an option. I just added them to the pan with the onion like I would have the raw meat, and continued on. 
   Anywho, this was tasty, makes great leftovers, and was a nice change from the usual. I hope everyone had a good weekend (or maybe still having a good 'weekend' like me?). 
   Whatever your plans, whether you have today off or not, have a great day!