Mediterranean Chicken Spaghetti Squash Bake
Why has it taken three weeks to recover from the holiday season?? I’m guessing it has something to do with a full two months of busy-ness leading to I-just-want-to-do-nothing syndrome. I’m still trying to catch my breath. The outdoor temperatures here in Minnesota were comparable to Antarctica last week (that’s really true, we were colder than Antarctica at least one day last week) and thus, we’ve been feeling a little stir crazy. At least school is back in session so things are getting back to normal with both routine and our meals. January has been the perfect time to rejuvenate both mind and body. My hubby and I have started the T25 workout series and I feel pretty good about it. We’ve also re-focused on eating more mindfully as the holiday indulgences and less physical activity do tend catch up with us. This Mediterranean chicken spaghetti squash bake is one of those delicious eating pleasures that serves to bring back more veggies and less grains to the table as well as being a warming winter weather food.
As I was dreaming about making my ricotta spinach artichoke dip one more time, I thought it just might make a really tasty pasta sauce. So I went with that idea and instead of pasta, used a spaghetti squash. To add more yumminess and a Mediterranean flair, I added kalamata olives, grilled chicken, and a combination of herbs to make chicken spaghetti squash bake into a complete meal. Fresh out of the oven, this dish is a creamy (mostly) clean eating comfort food!
- 1 roasted spaghetti squash
- 12 oz grilled chicken breast, diced
- 2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
- 1 small onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 5 oz fresh spinach, chopped (about 4 cups)
- 5-6 artichoke hearts, finely chopped
- 30 kalamata olives, sliced in half
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ½ cup ricotta
- 1 cup Italian cheese blend (like parmesan, romano, manchego, mozzarella, provolone)
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon basil
- ½ teaspoon marjoram
- ¼ teaspoon salt (optional - if you're using salty cheeses with the kalamatas, you may not need any additional salt)
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Shred the insides of a roasted spaghetti squash and place in a bowl with the diced grilled chicken.
- In a large frying pan, heat the butter or olive oil.
- Sauté onion, garlic and spinach until the spinach is wilted and bright green.
- Add spinach mixture to the squash and grilled chicken.
- Add remaining ingredients to the bowl and stir until completely combined.
- Scoop into a baking dish and top with additional cheese if desired.
- Bake 30 minutes until all is heated through.
- Serve hot.
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