Spaghetti Squash Boats with Italian Sausage & Marinara
Disclaimer: this post may contain affiliate links, which means if you decide to purchase any of the items linked in this post, I should earn a small commission. This creates no additional cost to you and helps support the work that goes into running The Fig Jar. Thank you! -Becky
Spaghetti squash boats with Italian sausage and marinara are insanely delicious, stupid easy, classy and healthy! Talk about a winner.
Come sail away with me in a spaghetti squash boat with italian sausage and marinara! There will also be cheese. Unless you are allergic, like my husband, I will make you one without cheese and it will still be really good. My heart will hurt for you a little, but it will still be really good. I LOVE this recipe. It’s first and foremost – absolutely delicious. But also stupid easy, classy and pretty dang healthy—if you are like me and think that a little sausage and cheese every now and then is healthy.
Spaghetti squash is such a fun vegetable and it is pretty much a blank canvas, like pasta, so the flavor options are vast, deep and wide. I’m going with a pretty classic combo here but there are some fun additions that will impress your guests/family/date/self. Ahem, hello capers and marinated artichokes. I love capers! I used to think they were gross but now I just love the sour little punch they add to dishes. Like my caper slaw I use on my salmon burgers. So fun!
How to cook Spaghetti Squash
Lets get to some recipe talk. The first thing you will do is roast the spaghetti squash. This is very easy, but takes the longest, so do this first. Annnd it’s very important to do it right! Wash the squash #rhymeskills, then slice in half, rub it down with oil and let it roast away (face down) on the baking sheet. Make sure you roast it long enough because crunchy spaghetti squash is just not good. About 40 minutes is usually good, it should be very tender. I usually give once of the halves a squeeze with tongs—if it squishes together very easily, it’s ready!
Fillings!
While the squash roasts, you can make your delicious homemade marinara, cook up that sweet italian sausage and before you know it the squash boats will be almost ready for boarding.
Once the squash boats are out, scrape the inside of the squash with a fork to reveal luscious tendrils of squash spaghetti, then fill them up with sausage, marinara, capers and artichokes, top with cheese and back in the oven they will go.
Top with some fresh basil confetti (these herb scissors make easy work of this!) and get out your boarding passes, we’re ready to set sail guys!
Spaghetti Squash Boats with Italian Sausage & Marinara
A hearty, but healthy meal that replaces pasta with spaghetti squash! Delicious, classy and super easy.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 2 1x
- Category: Main Course
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 1 spaghetti squash (cut in half, seeds removed)
- 1/2 lb ground Italian sausage
- 2 cups marinara (homemade or store-bought)
- 1/2 cup marinated artichokes (chopped)
- 2 tsp capers
- 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese (shredded)
- 1/3 cup Parmesan
- 2–3 tbsp olive oil
- salt & pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425.
- Cut squash in half lengthwise, remove seeds. Rub each half with at least 1 tbsp olive oil (more if the whole thing isn’t fully coated). Sprinkle each half liberally with salt and pepper. Place cut-side down on a lined baking sheet and roast for about 40 minutes until very tender.
- While the squash bakes cook the sausage and make marinara if you’re making your own. Grate cheese, chop artichokes and measure fillings.
- After removing cooked squash from the oven, reduce heat to 375.
- Use a fork to create “spaghetti” by dragging it from one end of the squash to the other (see photo above).
- Add 3/4 cup sauce, 1 tsp capers, 1/4 cup marinated artichokes and half the sausage to each squash half and mix to combine. Top each half with 1/4 cup marinara, 1/4 cup mozzarella and half of Parmesan. Bake for about 20 minutes, until cheese is melted and bubbly.
- Enjoy!
