I was going to call this BLT pasta since I thought that sounded catchy, but I didn’t want to trick you even further than I already am by calling it pasta. I mean I guess you all know it’s really not actual pasta. And if you’re new here and new to paleo, by “pasta” I mean some sort of vegetable that when manipulated can kind of resemble actual pasta. I’m personally a fan of spaghetti squash. It’s good, trust me. Or don’t, because I can’t remember what real pasta tastes like anymore. It’s a distant memory.
So it’s not BLT pasta. But it IS just as good as that might be. And it passed the picky husband test with flying colors. He agreed to eat it for lunch tomorrow after eating it tonight which gives it 2 husband approved gold stars. I don’t even think he knew it was broccoli rabe so don’t say anything. He’s not a fan of the rabe.
So enough about picky husbands and back to everything else. The weather is not supposed to cooperate for my planned speedwork tomorrow so lets all say a little prayer to the gods of humidity and dew point and any other weather markers with the potential to ruin my workout. Am I getting more creative with my humid weather complaints? I know but I’m trying. Done now.
Bacon, Broccoli Rabe and Tomato Pasta
Ingredients
- Small-med sized spaghetti squash
- 1 lb nitrate free sugar free bacon or the best you can find*
- 1 large bunch broccoli rabe coarsely chopped with large stems removed
- 2 scallions thinly sliced
- 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes cut in half
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
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Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
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Cut spaghetti squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds and fibrous strings.
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Place face down on an aluminum foil lined baking sheet. Roast in the preheated oven about 25 minutes, until the back of the squash can be pushed in just a bit, and the "spaghetti" (flesh) is not super soft. This will create a more "al dente" pasta! Al dente spaghetti squash is key for this recipe!
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Heat a large pot of salted water and bring to a boil. This will be used to cook the broccoli rabe.
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Heat a large heavy bottomed saute pan over med-hi heat. Cook the bacon in batches until brown and crisp on both sides. Drain on paper towels. Save half of the rendered bacon fat.
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Once the water reaches a boil, cook the broccoli rabe in the boiling water for just one minute, drain in a collander and rinse with cold water. Set aside.
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Once all the bacon is done cooking and drained, keep the heat on med and add the broccoli rabe to the pan with bacon fat and sautee about 5 minutes.
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Add the halved tomatoes to the pan with the broccoli rabe and sautee another minute or 2 or until tomatoes begin to soften. At this point you can crumble bacon (or break into pieces) and add to the pan. Cook over med heat another minute and stir to combine flavors.
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Remove mixture from heat and toss in salt and pepper to taste (I added 1/2 tsp salt). Now take the roasted spaghetti squash and use a fork to scrape out all the spaghetti strands lengthwise. Put all of it in a large dish or bowl.
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Add the bacon, broccoli, and tomato mixture to the spaghetti squash making sure to include all the fat and juices left in the pan. Add in the scallions and toss it all together.
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Serve warm, or however you want. I ate it warm (cooled down while I snapped my photos!) and it was actually really good this way. Works well for leftovers too!
*Don’t stress to much over the sugar free part, unless you are doing a cleanse and specifically can’t have added sweeteners. Just make sure it’s nitrate free and check the ingredients for any other weird additives before purchasing!
This looks so good! I started reading one of the books you recommended and I have to say I am intrigued:) And seeing amazing recipes like this helps me buy into this concept even more. I have a feeling this will be on my meal plan for next week. I have managed to get my husband to eat spaghetti squash but I think the added bacon will make him very happy!
Which book? Bacon really does make almost anything all around better! Let me know how it comes out 🙂
I generally have a pet peeve with ‘substitute foods’ – because ‘spaghetti squash’ has neither the taste nor texture of pasta, as an example.
BUT – I think it is AWESOME, and makes me want to cook it NOW. haha I think I could have spaghetti squash 95% of the time with the occasional pasta load-up (I have no sensitivities). My wife prefers pasta but has gluten issues … older son is not a squash fan, younger son is pretty easy going either way.
It is funny how things like taste and texture play across different people – always makes cooking a challenge. Especially when you are like me – I have no real dislikes or issues with food. Sure I have preferences, but am incredibly easy-going.
Cool recipe – thanks for sharing!
No doubt spaghetti squash is NOT pasta! My husband says that psychologically just seeing something that looks like a pasta dish helps him eat healthier. He is notoriously picky so I’ll take it!
so, i haven’t been around that long…
does your husband eat paleo? or did you make that decision on your own? my hubby and i have very different eating habits, so i’d love to hear more about what you do to manage different eating preferences….
I made the decision to eat paleo as a way to discover food intolerances and when I felt so much better, I was happy to stick with it. My husband did a whole30 (30 days strict paleo) but now only eats that way when I cook him meals. He noticed how much better he felt during the 30 days, but was happy to bring cereal and sweets back into his life as well as a sandwich here and there mainly for convenience. So, to sum up he’s somewhere between SAD and paleo on any given day! My kids are definitely not strict paleo, feed them as unprocessed as they’ll allow but I don’t go crazy over it. One of my daughters does tend to eat what I eat and the other is happy with more grains. I try to just encouraged lots of fruits and vegetables, protein, good quality dairy and try to limit anything packaged. It’s a lot of food prep but it’s worth it and manageable 🙂
This looks so good!
Thanks, hope you try it!
i will make this if you string the squash first, deal? haha. I get so messy with that thing!
Ha! Of all the disasters that go down in my kitchen stringing the squash is surprisingly not one of them. You have a deal 🙂
Hi Michele, I just made this for dinner with a few changes (due to being cheap and ingredient availability), and it was delicious! 🙂 I’m definitely not Paleo in general, but this was a great, nutritious, and yummy dinner.
So glad you hear you made this and liked it! You don’t have to eat paleo all the time to enjoy some paleo cooking once in a while 🙂