Spaghetti Squash Spinach Lasagna

Preparing spaghetti squash for another dish? Roast another and save it for this recipe, to cut down on prep time.

2 small spaghetti squash (about 1 ½ lb) 2 tsp olive oil 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced 8 oz fresh spinach ½ c part-skim ricotta cheese (or whole milk ricotta, if that’s your preference) ⅛ tsp salt 2 oz shredded part-skim mozzarella 8 oz ground beef, ground turkey, hot italian sausage, or sweet italian sausage, or combination 1 ½ c marinara sauce (did you put up jars of sauce over the summer? Good for you! Time to bust that out! Otherwise, any jar of your favorite marinara will work.) 1 oz grated Parmesan

Preheat oven to 350. Start squash. Cut squash in half lengthwise. Scoop out seeds; discard. Place squash halfs, cut side up, on a baking sheet and bake at 350 for 50 minutes. While squash cooks…Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan, swirling to coat. Add garlic; cook 30 seconds. Add spinach, cooking only until it just wilts. Remove from heat and let cool enough to handle. Place spinach on a clean dishtowel. Squeeze until barely moist. (Or, just grab handfuls of spinach in your fist and squeeze over the sink until most of the moisture has been squeezed out.) Set aside. Return skillet to medium-high heat. Add ground beef (or turkey or sausage). Cook until browned, stirring to crumble. Drain any fat. Add marinara sauce to meat. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer 4 minutes. Remove from heat. Set aside. Finish squash.Remove squash from the oven. (Increase oven temp to 425.) Squash should be tender. Let stand 10 minutes, to cool. Scrape the inside of squash with a fork to remove spaghetti-like strands. Place strands on a clean dishtowel. Squeeze until barely moist. (Or, just grab handfuls of squash in your two hands and squeeze over the sink until most of the moisture has been squeezed out.) Combine spinach, ricotta, salt and half of mozzarella in a medium bowl. Mix and mix until ricotta and spinach are well incorporated. In a 9×11 glass baking dish sprayed with cooking spray, layer all of sauce/meat, followed by all of squash, ending with spinach/ricotta mixture on top. Spread evenly. Sprinkle top with remaining mozzarella and parmesan. Bake at 425 for 20 minutes. Serve immediately.