Who doesn’t love spaghetti and meatballs! Spaghetti and meatballs is a classic comfort-food dish that’s usually loaded with tons of calories, carbs and fat; however, this healthier spin on spaghetti and meatballs- made with spaghetti squash and grassfed beef is lighter and leaner while being so delicious! Keep on reading for the recipe and tips!

I used my Vitamix for this recipe – so that the meatballs were well mixed with the veggies (yep, there are veggies in the meatballs!). Using a processor helped me avoid using fillers like cheese and bread crumbs.

Try making this dish for an easy weeknight meal or for a more decadent weekend affair. The great news too is that this dish is easily able to make you a few extra portions (which means easy grab and go meals like lunch and dinner).

Enjoy this delicious “spaghetti” and meatballs dish!

Spaghetti and Meatballs

Prep time: 20 minutes
Total time: 45 minutes
Makes: 3-4 servings

Ingredients:

Spaghetti squash:

• 1 spaghetti squash, halved and seeds carved out

Meatballs:

• 1 small onion, sliced
• 1 carrot, sliced
• 1/2 zucchini, sliced
• 1 1/2 lbs ground grass-fed beef or turkey
• Dash each: Salt, pepper, onion powder, oregano, parsley (and any that you like)
• 1 Tbsp avocado oil

Sauce:

• 1, 16 oz low-sodium jar of organic tomato sauce (to make it easy)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper place both halves of the spaghetti squash face down and bake for 30-40 minutes or until soft (or microwave for total 12 minutes face down on a glass dish–> MUCH easier option!).
2. In the vitamix or food processor, blend together on low speed the vegetables, meat, and herbs and spices- until well mixed.
3. Form meatballs with your hands or with a spoon and set aside (should make 4-8 depending on the size).
4. Heat a medium skillet over a medium flame and add the avocado oil to the skillet and allow to heat for 1-2 minutes.
5. Add the meatballs to the skillet and cook on medium heat (flipping once or twice about every 3-5 minutes, for a total of 10-12 minutes), set aside on a plate once they’re cooked.
6. Remove the spaghetti squash from the oven or microwave and with a fork – run through the center of the squash and the squash will be like spaghetti.
7. In a mini sauce pan, heat the tomato sauce (if you like it hot) over medium heat so that when you serve it’s warm!
8. Plate the spaghetti squash with the sauce and meatballs, and sprinkle with your favorite cheese if you’re not dairy free.
9. Serve and enjoy!