Recipe: Spaghetti Squash with Ricotta, Sage, and Pine Nuts
Looking for a new way to enjoy spaghetti squash? I often eat spaghetti squash with just a bit of butter or olive oil, salt, and pepper. This recipe hardly takes more time to prepare, but it turns the squash into a slightly fancier affair. Creamy and savory, it’s a good side dish or alternative to pasta.
The recipe below is for a smallish spaghetti squash, about 2 pounds. You can easily adjust the quantities of ingredients depending on the size of your squash. It’s a simple recipe, open to adaptation and not requiring absolutely precise measurements.
There is one thing I’d recommend to you, though, and that’s the superiority of fresh ricotta. You can easily make your own fresh ricotta, or look for it at your farmers market, cheesemonger, or Italian deli.
→ If you have ricotta left over after making this recipe, you might find some inspiration in our Top Five Things to Do with Ricotta.
Tester’s Notes
I was glad for the opportunity to make this lovely side dish from Emily. I have made it in the past and it was nice to return to it; it’s so simple! Just stir in a little ricotta, garlic, and sage and you have a really delicious side dish or even a main dish.
If your squash is larger than 2 pounds do make sure you have some extra ricotta. Mine was closer to 3 pounds, and I ended up doubling the ricotta, which my guests liked a lot. But this is one of those recipes that is easily adjusted to your tastes, and should be. — Faith, November 2014
Spaghetti Squash with Ricotta, Sage, and Pine Nuts
Serves 4
Nutritional Info
Ingredients
- 2 pounds
spaghetti squash
- 1 tablespoon
olive oil
- 6 to 8
fresh sage leaves
- 3/4 cup
ricotta
- 2 cloves
garlic, mashed or grated
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 cup
pine nuts, toasted
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Pierce the whole squash in several places with a knife or fork, place it in a baking dish, and bake until flesh is tender, about 1 hour.
Remove squash from oven and let cool for 5 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a small pan. Quickly fry sage leaves until crispy but not burnt. Crumble sage leaves into a large bowl and combine with ricotta and garlic. Set aside.
Cut the roasted squash in half lengthwise and remove seeds. Pull a fork through the flesh to separate and remove the strands from the shell. Add to the bowl with the ricotta mixture.
Combine squash and ricotta mixture and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Sprinkle with pine nuts before serving.
Recipe Notes
Updated from recipe originally published October 2008.