Spaghetti Squash Mac N Cheese, Sausage, and Roasted Sweet Potatoes feat. Sesame Gremolata

This meal was so amazing. The contrast of textures and tastes was soo good. We just grilled up some Italian sausages for protein and Jacob found a mac n cheese recipe online and my favorite cookbook The Haven's Kitchen Cooking School provided the veggie and sauce. I think I followed all of the recipes pretty closely and don't think I would change very much about them. After having this meal for leftovers, it just confirms how yummy of a meal it is.

Some things I did this time were:

• I halved the mac n cheese recipe and we used Tillamook Medium Cheddar Cheese.
• I didn't both trying to cook the mac n cheese inside of the spaghetti squash, I mixed everything together and cooked it in a casserole dish for 10 minutes. 
• I realized as I am typing this, that the sweet potatoes called for hazelnut gremolata and not sesame gremolata. It is the same recipe, just subbing in hazelnuts instead of sesame seeds.  I think it tasted great with the sesame gremolata but can see how it could also be tasty with hazelnut flavor. The sesame and parsley went great with the sausage as well. 

Spaghetti Squash Mac and Cheese

Makes: 4 servings

Time: Prep 10 minutes
          Cook 1 hour 15 minutes

Ingredients:
Spaghetti Squash:
     2 small/medium spaghetti squash about 2 lbs each
     1 TBS olive oil
     1/2 tsp garlic salt (or to taste)
     1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper (or to taste)
Cheese Sauce:
     2 TBS butter
     2 TBS all-purpose flour* (or gluten-free all-purpose flour, tapioca flour or cornstarch)
     ½ tsp sea salt
     ¼ tsp garlic powder
     1 ½ cups  whole milk
     2 ½ cups Cabot Shredded Cheddar cheese divided.

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Cut both spaghetti squash in half and remove the seeds (scoop them out with a metal spoon).
3. Brush the inside with olive oil (or spray with an olive oil spray) and sprinkle with sea salt and pepper.
4. Place cut-side down in a baking dish. Fill baking dish ¼” with water. Cover baking dish with aluminum foil.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for 45-60 minutes or until the squash is soft to the touch (it will compress down when pushed lightly).
6. Remove from the oven and turn the cut-side to the top.Let cool.
7. Use a fork to shred the spaghetti squash, being careful not to poke holes in the shell.
8. Leave shredded spaghetti squash in the shell while you make the cheese sauce.
9. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
10. In a small bowl, combine flour sea salt and garlic powder. Set aside.
11. Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add dry ingredients and whisk to combine. Whisk constantly until ingredients just start to brown (about 1-2 minutes).Add milk and whisk until mixture is smooth.
12. Continue cooking over medium-high heat until the mixture comes to a boil and starts to thicken (about 3-5 minutes). Once mixture is thick, add 2 cups of shredded cheese and whisk until the cheese is completely melted. Once cheese sauce is smooth, remove the saucepan from the heat.
13. Distribute cheese sauce evenly among the four halves of shredded spaghetti squash (with the size squashes I had, I used about ½ cup plus 2 TBS of cheese sauce for each of the four halves).
14. Use a fork to gently stir the cheese sauce into each half of shredded spaghetti squash. Once the sauce is evenly distributed in the squash, use the fork or a spatula to smooth out the surface of each squash half.
15. Top with remaining ½ cup of cheese and bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes, or until the cheese on the top is melted and lightly brown.
16. Serve warm!

Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Serves: 4 - 6

Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:
     3 sweet potatoes, slice into 3/4 inch disks
     Extra-virgin olive oil
     Fine sea salt
     Freshly ground black pepper
     Sesame gremolata

Steps:

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 
2. In a large bow, toss the sweet potatoes with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
3. Place the sweet potato in a single layer on the prepared pan. Roast for 30 to 40 minutes, rotating the pan after 20 minutes. 
4. When the sweet potatoes are evenly brown and tender, transfer them to a serving platter and drizzle with the gremolata. 

Sesame Gremolata

Makes: about 1 cup

Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:
     1 cup freshly packed fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
     Grated zest of 1 lemon
     2 garlic cloves, minced
     1/3 cup sesame seeds, toasted
     Extra-virgin olive oil
     Juice of 1/2 lemon
     Fine sea salt

Steps:

1. Place the parsley in the bowl of  a food processor with the lemon zest, garlic, and sesame seeds. Pulse until the parsley is minced and the mixture is just combined. Transfer to a bowl and stir in olive oil to reach the desired consistency. Add lemon juice and salt to taste.
2. If you do not have a food processor, finely chop the parsley and place it in a bowl with the lemon zest and garlic. Mix in the sesame seeds with the oil to reach the desired consistency. Stir in the lemon juice and salt to taste. If you want the garlic finer, grate it on a rasp-style grater. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. 

EAT