Using spaghetti squash for half of the pasta in a dish reduces the carb load of the dish and allows you to squeeze in extra veggies! Try my roasted garlic alfredo sauce which only uses four ingredients, in this delicious weeknight favorite!
First of all, I wanted to say Happy Birthday to my Dad! If you’re out there reading, Dad, I hope you have a wonderful day! This Roasted Garlic Alfredo Spaghetti Squash & Angel Hair is dedicated to you, who taught me to just “throw something together” and trust your instinct when cooking.
Today’s recipe is one of my favorite ways to eat spaghetti squash– combined with pasta! I am just not one of those people who can sit down with a bowl of zucchini noodles and feel full and satisfied afterwards. But I do know that a giant bowl of pasta won’t have me feeling much better afterwards! A secret of mine is to mix veggie noodles alongside pasta, and most of the time, you can’t even tell they’re there!
If your sauce is good enough, anyway. It’s all about the sauce. And my friends, this roasted garlic alfredo is definitely good enough! There’s a really easy shortcut when you’re making pasta– buying the store brand pasta sauces, and enriching them with more flavor, cream, and spices. I do this all the time with jarred marinara– most of the time they don’t have enough seasoning so I end up adding basil, oregano, more onion/garlic powder, etc.
Today’s sauce is jarred alfredo (I used Kroger’s Four Cheese Alfredo for $1.67) combined with creamy roasted garlic, milk, and salt and pepper. The sauce itself is pretty good out of the jar, but adding the roasted garlic takes it to a whole new level.
If you’ve never tasted roasted garlic, you may look at my recipe below and think I’m crazy for calling for two whole heads of garlic. Roasting the garlic takes away all of the pungent, hit-you-in-the-face garlic flavor and mellows it out. The garlic easily pops out of the cloves– you can squeeze it out and it comes out like softened butter. And it tastes like butter too. So delish!
It takes about 40 minutes for the squash and garlic to roast, but after they’re finished, this dish comes together in less than 15 minutes.
Here’s the recipe for Roasted Garlic & Alfredo Spaghetti Squash Pasta:
- 2 medium size spaghetti squash
- 2 large heads of garlic
- Olive oil for drizzling
- cooking spray
- 1/2 lb angel hair pasta (half a box)
- 1 jar of your favorite four-cheese alfredo sauce
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
- 1/4 cup milk
- salt + pepper
- parsley or chives to garnish
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
- Using a sharp knife, poke holes all over each squash and microwave for 5-8 minutes, whole, until it can be easily sliced in half length-wise with a large knife.
- Meanwhile, slice the tops off the heads of garlic and drizzle with olive oil. Wrap each garlic head separately in tin foil (or use a cast iron garlic roasted if you have one).
- Place the garlic in the preheated oven and set the timer for 40 minutes.
- Place the spaghetti squash cut side up on a large baking sheet. Spray with cooking spray and place in the oven, set another timer for 35 minutes.
- Once the garlic and squash are done, remove from oven. Use a fork to scrape out the spaghetti squash strands into a large bowl and set aside.
- Squeeze the cloves of garlic onto a small cutting board and use a knife/fork to smash and cut the garlic into small pieces.
- Boil the angel hair according to package directions, drain and set aside.
- In a small saucepan, heat up the jar of alfredo sauce and then add the roasted garlic, milk, parmesan, and a little salt and pepper.
- Add the cooked pasta to the bowl with the squash, and then pour the sauce over the top. Use a mixing spoon to combine.
- Garnish with a light sprinkling of parmesan and either parsley or chives!
This is absolutely fabulous! I am going to make them this weekend. I love anything with pasta post!!