Spaghetti Squash with Sweet Italian Turkey Sausage Pasta Sauce

I think I begin every blog with "boy it's been a while!" but it really has for a recipe!! Then last night, I thought I'd take pictures of the dinner I put together to finally do another recipe blog. This recipe turned out fantastic, and was even a huge hit with my 1 year old (always a plus)! A friend of mine gave me a spaghetti squash before they moved since she couldn't take it with her, and I had to use it before it started going bad. So I consulted the good old Pinterest boards and came across a recipe that I decided to use the basic premise of, but completely make it my own. I knew I'd be doing some version of healthier spaghetti, because I LOOOOOVE pasta, so that's what I went with! It's so good, I just finished typing it up for my personal family cookbook. :) And now here it is for your personal enjoyment!

Spaghetti Squash with Sweet Italian Turkey
Sausage Pasta Sauce
Serves: 3-4 adults

Ingredients:

·         1 spaghetti squash

·         1 package sweet italian turkey sausage, removed from casings

·         Olive oil

·         ½ med sweet Vidalia onion, diced

·         1 garlic clove, minced

·         Handful of fresh basil, chopped (or about 1 Tbsp dried)

·         About 2 cups of fresh baby spinach

·         1 jar Classico Traditional Sweet Basil pasta sauce

·         ½ cup fat free half-n-half

·         Salt & pepper to taste

Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1.       This is the easiest way I’ve found to cook spaghetti squash: rinse it clean and then pierce several holes in the skin with a sharp knife. Put it in a large crock pot with 2-3 cups of water, and cook on high for 4 hours.

2.      For the sauce, cook sausage in a large skillet over medium-high heat. If the sausage is in links, remove from the casings. I also added some additional fennel seeds to increase the flavor, about ¼ tsp or so. Crumble and cook through, then drain and set aside for now.

1.       In the same skillet, add a couple turns of the pan of olive oil. Add the onion and saute 3-4 minutes. Then add in the garlic, fresh basil, and baby spinach. The garlic will be done by the time the baby spinach has wilted down.

1.       Add 2/3 or more of the jar of pasta sauce, it really all depends on personal preference. Mix to combine. Then add the half-n-half, about ½ cup, or again the amount of your personal taste. Return the sausage to the skillet, and taste the sauce. Add salt & pepper to taste. Keep the sauce warm while you prepare the spaghetti squash.

1.       With an oven mitt or pot holder, carefully remove the spaghetti squash from the crock pot to a cutting board. Slice the squash in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds, and take a fork to break apart the squash into strands. Serve in a bowl with the sauce and top with parmesan cheese.

     And the final presentation!! Yummy!! 

For the Love of Babies!!

I don't know if you would have considered me a baby crazy person before I had my daughter....but now? Whole other ball game. I love them and want to hold every little baby I see!! This probably would not go over well with strangers, so I seriously have to resist being that lunatic baby lady you see hovering around. But I also love making stuff for them! And now that I've had my daughter, and have had several friends "review" a few things, I have to say, I love gifting burp cloths. The way I make them are super absorbent, so soft, and so brightly colored! They are definitely a one of a kind gift for sure! I don't usually brag, but seriously - every single person I've made these for has said they are the best they've ever used. One was even a 4th time Mom and said they are the best she's ever used!! So I am slowly working on selling them on Etsy (shop is up, just nothing listed....yet lol). So since it's been a while since my last post, I figured I'd share a couple of my latest gifts. They include burp cloths, pacifier clips, and ribbon/tag blankets. I hope you enjoy! :)

2013 Crafts Round Up!

So it's basically been 6 months since I last posted on here. So much has happened! Our daughter Rachael was born July 28th....after 30 LONG hours of labor. Talk about exhaustion! Oy! All I have to say is whenever we decide to have #2, s/he better not take that damn long, or I'll be begging for the knife! :-p I had so many wonderful, helpful visitors after she was born, I never would have been able to do it without them! Chris came home beginning of October and finally got to meet his daughter!! It was quite emotional, as you can imagine, as well as an adjustment. It didn't take too long for Rachael to get to know her Daddy though, since he was able to take paternity leave. Our first holiday season with her was very low key and laid back....no traveling for us, and no one was able to come and visit. But it was still a very nice holiday season, and lots of love and gifts were sent our way! Okay, it was mostly for Rachael....she is one loved little girl! So that's the last 6 months in a very small nutshell. Most of you probably know all the details anyway.

So on to the point of this post....Christmas Crafts!!! Woo!! So many things made this year, where to begin?! Well some of these are baby crafts or crafts for friends, so it's not all for Christmas. So here goes the rundown!

1) Baby gifts for our friends Kara and Aaron, as they celebrated the arrival of their daughter in October.

Burp cloths matching their vintage story book nursery theme.

Pacifier clips!

Reds blanket! Emblem embroidered by my Aunt Dory. She really made it look awesome! (I so want an embroidering machine!!! lol)

Rachael being my model. :)

2) Baby gifts for our friends Matt and Erin, who celebrated the arrival of their son this fall as well. 

Crochet blanket laid out.

Close up of the stitch...I love this stitch!

The edging, reverse single crochet, also known as a crab stitch. First time using it on a blanket, pretty neat look!

Pacifier clips! Had to make a Hokie one, and found this super awesome beer bottle cap fabric I had to use as well!

Blanket and pacifier clips

 3) Baby gifts for our friends Nicole and Adam, who celebrated the arrival of their baby girl in October as well. I had made her a blanket for their son when he was born, so of course I had to make their baby girl one too!

I love this look...Bavarian crochet looks so beautiful! But seriously takes forever after about round 6. lol

Close up on the center

Close up of the outside and edging

Pacifier Clips for them as well!

Burp cloths too!

4) When my friend Andrea came to visit, we made a trip to Joann's Fabrics. I'm always looking at fabric there, and found this really bright and colorful home decor fabric I knew would make such a fun apron! So I was going to get the fabric to make myself one, and offered to make her one as well, which she quickly agreed to! These are pictures of hers, as mine became more of another test to perfect the pattern layout. But I think I've nailed it now, and it's perfect to make more for my Etsy shop! :)

Apron Front

Apron back

Decorative Buttons

Pocket

Towel Loop

Adjustable neck strap!

5) Aprons for my mother-in-law and sister-in-law for Christmas! Lydia (my SIL) likes to experiment in the kitchen, and Susan (MIL) likes to bake occasionally as well, so I thought they'd like aprons for Christmas. We also try to do some handmade gifts every year, so this was right up that alley! I loved the way both of these turned out, and the pattern for Lydia's will be offered in my Etsy shop as well! :)

Lydia's Apron Front

Apron Back

Apron laid out

Pocket and Towel Loop

Adjustable neck strap on both aprons!

Susan's Apron Front

Apron Back

Pocket, Towel Loop and Bottom Accent Fabric

Accent Buttons!

6) Christmas Gifts for my niece Kara!! My niece is about a year and half old and LOVES her play kitchen stuff! So when I saw an apron set on her Amazon wish list, I asked my SIL Jessie what Kara's sizes were so I could make her a set instead. My original plan was to do puppies or kitties since Jessie said she loves them, but then I saw this elephant print fabric in Joann's and just fell in LOVE with it!! It is SO dang cute, I had to order a LOT more online so I can offer it in my Etsy shop as well! Jessie said she loves it and wears it every day, and now uses her own oven mitt for her play kitchen oven rack instead of stealing her Mom's. She's just too darn cute! :) I also made her a winter hat to match one I made for Rachael...it was a quick work up and super cute as well!

The whole apron set, including mini spatulas I found at the PX!!

Apron includes pocket, 3 utensil slots, and adjustable ribbon neck strap!

Cute little pleats at the bottom

Chef's hat!!

Adjustable to grow with her!

Oven mitt front

Oven Mitt back

Winter hat!

Close up of the flower and a truer color shot of the yarn

Well that concludes all my projects from 2013!! Already working on another baby set for a friend, planning another baby set for another friend, and so much to make for my Etsy Shop! That should be up and running in the next couple of weeks, so be sure to be on the lookout for the link! But trust me, if you're friends with me on Facebook, you won't miss all the advertising I'll be doing!! :)

Happy New Year to all my family and friends, here's to a wonderful year of health, happiness, and love in your life! :)

And as always, Happy Crafting!! :)