Diary Recipes

Roasted Brussels Sprouts in Spaghetti Squash Nests

This is a bit of a gimmick more than a recipe, but at least its an attractive and good-tasting gimmick. Roasted Brussels sprouts make great "eggs" in little nests of spaghetti squash tossed with cheese and herbs. Serve them as their own course as part of a formal dinner, or with a piece of roasted or poached chicken breast alongside and call it the whole thing.

This was a spaghetti squash I grew myself, and it separated into nice clean strands, just as it should. Ive had more troubles with purchased spaghetti squash being too soft and mushy, which is really annoying when they are not cheap. Pity we are not good growers of squash, generally getting few and small ones. I hope that one of these days we will get the amendments right and win the battle of the bugs.

Makes 4 to 6 servings
1 hour 20 minutes - 20 minutes prep time


1  1 kilo (2 pounds) spaghetti squash
1 kilo (2 pounds) Brussels sprouts
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon rubbed oregano
1/2 teaspoon rubbed savory
1/2 teaspoon rubbed thyme
freshly ground black pepper to taste
a little more grated Parmesan to sprinkle over, if you like

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Wash the squash, and stab it in several places with a fork. Bake it - on a tray; it may leak - for 40 to 45 minutes, until soft.

Meanwhile, wash and trim the Brussels sprouts, and cut a cross in the base of each one to facilitate faster cooking. Toss them with the oil in a baking pan, and put them in the oven when the squash is about half done (20 or 25 minutes still to go). Sprinkle them with a little salt first if you like.

Have the butter and grated cheese standing by, along with the seasonings. When the squash is done, remove it from the oven and cut it in half. Scoop out and discard the seeds, etc from the middles, then use a fork to pull out the strands. put them in a bowl and toss them with the butter, cheese and seasonings.

Divide the spaghetti squash onto individual serving plates, and form into little nests. Serve with the roasted Brussels sprouts divided amongst the nests, and with a little more cheese sprinkled over top if you like. You will need to work quickly as I found the spaghetti squash cooled off fairly quickly. They could go back in the oven to stay warm if you need a few extra minutes to get other parts of the meal ready, as long as your plates are happy with that.





Last year at this time I made White Chocolate Mousse with Cranberries, on the occasion of my mothers birthday. I was just thinking about what a fabulous knock-out dessert it was, and that I should make it for Christmas dinner this year, and there it is. Oh yeah, I think so. It was SOOO good.