All the creamy, cheesy, bacon goodness you love about Pasta Carbonara, but lightened up! Swapping out traditional spaghetti for spaghetti squash saves about 190 calories per one cup serving. An easy, hearty, low-carb, gluten-free, grain-free, healthy meal. (whoosh…that’s a lot of goodness!)
True carbonara, the kind you get in Italy, doesn’t actually use any cream. The creaminess comes from the combination of egg yolks, Parmesan cheese, pepper and a bit of the water the pasta was cooked in. Seems like here in the USA and many other places, when it is possible to find Pasta Carbonara, it’s usually drowning in cream….ugh! It’s just SO not necessary!
This recipe is a holding true to the traditional Italian style carbonara, and being prepared sans the cream. In order to lighten it up even more and make it a healthier option, we are swapping the traditional spaghetti for spaghetti squash. Alright…fine.. so maybe you wont be able to do that twirly, slurpy thing that’s so fun to do with regular spaghetti noodles…but the pay off is HUGE! As in a whopping 190 calories shaved off a one cup serving. Yep, one cup of Spaghetti has 221 calories and one cup of Spaghetti squash has a mere 31 calories. And lets face it, who only eats a one cup serving? So the payoff is even more dramatic!
Wondering how to cook a spaghetti squash? it’s really quite easy. It’s possible to cook in the microwave or the oven. I slightly prefer the oven option, just because I think the texture of the squash is a little “thicker” when cooked that way. But, that being said, I do also cook it in the microwave- just depends on how much time I have (or more like, how starving I am, and how patient I’m feeling about waiting to dig my fork into a big ole bowl of cheesy bacon goodness).
How to Cook Spaghetti Squash in the Oven
1. Preheat Oven to 400 F
2. Slice the squash in half lengthwise, from stem to tail. I think this is the toughest part of this recipe. Spaghetti squash can be difficult to cut through. Make sure you have a sharp knife (like a Chefs knife) and a good grip on the squash. Cut slowly, I find “rocking” the knife back and forth helps to make your way through the squash.
3. Scoop out the seeds and stringy stuff ( technical term..hee hee) from the inside of the squash.
4. Place the spaghetti squash flesh side down in a Pyrex glass baking pan.
5. Cover with aluminum foil. Cook for 30-45 min. You’ll know when the squash if fully cooked when you can easily poke a fork into the squash and it goes all the way through the flesh.
6. Flip spaghetti squash over (carefully they will be very hot) . Use a fork to “rake” the squash and create the noodles.
How to Cook Spaghetti Squash in the Microwave
1. Same as steps #2-4 above
2. Microwave for 10-12 min. Depending on the size of your squash, you may need to adjust the time up or down. You’ll know when the squash if fully cooked when you can easily poke a fork into the squash and it goes all the way through the flesh.
3. Let squash cool to touch. (about 10 min). Flip spaghetti squash over. Use a fork to “rake” the squash and create the noodles.
While the squash is cooking and doing its thing, to magically turn into perfect little “noodles”, you can whip up the rest of the ingredients to make the carbonara.
You’ll want to cook the bacon(or pancetta) and prepare the egg/cheese mixture. I know some folks have some concerns about using raw eggs, which are part of the process in preparing traditional Pasta Carbonara. The raw eggs will be mixed with the hot spaghetti squash, and will cook while being tossed with the hot squash. Most people will tell you there is no issue with using raw eggs this way, because they actually cook (and that’s been my experience as well).
One other option, if you are still concerned, is to use pasteurized eggs. I had a coupon for a free dozen Safest Choice eggs, so I thought this just might be a good recipe to try them out. The eggs are pasteurized in a gentle warm water bath which eliminates the risk of salmonella. Honesty I didn’t know what to expect. Happy to say they tasted exactly the same as non-pasteurized eggs. I guess I thought they would be a different consistency or something if they had been heated. (they weren’t , they were just the same).
Once the bacon is cooked, you’ll add that to the egg/cheese mixture. Toss with the hot spaghetti squash , top with some extra Parmesan cheese and be prepared to smile the largest, ear to ear smile you’ve ever had.
To keep things vegetarian, you can substitute olives, peas or sun-dried tomatoes for the bacon (or any of your favorite veggie bacon alternatives) . I've made it with crumbled up veggie sausage before and it's delish!
Mangia! Mangia! Mangia! {eat, eat, eat…and eat some more !}
Spaghetti Squash Carbonara
Ingredients
- 1 large spaghetti squash about 2 lbs.
- 6 slices bacon or ⅓ cup cooked pancetta
- 2 large eggs
- ¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 4 cloves garlic minced (optional)
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley
- extra Parmesan cheese for garnish if desired
Instructions
- Slice spaghetti squash in half, lengthwise, from stem to tail. Remove seeds and stringy flesh. Place squash flesh side down in a microwave safe glass baking pan. Cook 10-12 min. until flesh is soft . Let squash cool to touch, turn over and "rake" a fork through the flesh to create the "noodles".
- While the squash is cooking, use kitchen shears to cut bacon into small pieces. Cook bacon in a large skillet.. Place on a paper towel lined plate when cooked. Reserve a small amount of bacon drippings in frying pan.
- Combine eggs, cheese , salt and pepper in a small bowl.set aside.
- Just prior to serving, add garlic to frying pan and cook until fragrant (about 1 min.) Add the spaghetti squash and bacon and heat thoroughly. Turn off heat, and add egg/cheese mixture. Toss to combine. (The egg will cook when combined with the hot squash).
- Garnish with parsley and additional Parmesan cheese.
Nutrition
Brittany killian
LOVE this recipe. My daughter couldn't get enough of it, and although my husband claimed he didn't eat any (it was all gone after work), our daughter tattled. He ate the rest. Huge hit! Making it a second time today.
Stella
So good! My husband, my mother, and I all LOVED this recipe. So easy to make and SO flavorful! Thank you!
Susan
Thanks Stella! So happy to hear the family enjoyed the carbonara! and appreciate you taking the time to comment!
Kelley
Hi, i am doing keto and tried this tonight. I found it to be very watery and overly sweet. Any recommendations? Thank you!
Susan
Hi Kelley, Thanks for your comments, I do have a few suggestions. Spaghetti squash (just like cauliflower rice) does tend to have a high water content. I've had good luck with either 1) putting the cooked spaghetti squash in a colander and allowing to rest a few minutes and drain off some of the water created by cooking and patting it dry with paper towel/tea towel before adding it to the frying pan and adding the bacon and cheese mixture. 2) "Wringing" it out- by placing the cooked spaghetti squash in a clean tea towel/cheesecloth and wringing it gently to release any water prior to adding to the frying pan with bacon and cheese mixture.
As far as the sweetness, I'm not really sure what would be causing sweetness in this recipe because there aren't any ingredients that would be sweet? The only thing I can think of is possibly the bacon used might have been a "maple bacon" or "applewood smoked" bacon which might have some sweetness? This recipe works best with either regular bacon ( not smoked or flavored) or pancetta. Hope that helps!