Cook a dinner while you cook dinner

First of all, thank you for all the well wishes after my nutmeg fiasco last week! It was great to hear that I wasn't the only one in the dark about nutmeg, and also to learn a thing or two from those of you who had more information about herbs and spices.

Today I'm sharing a very simple recipe, and not because I think you've never heard of spaghetti squash. But rather because I think it's a great way to make two dinners at once. I get home pretty late a few nights a week because my favorite yoga studio is on the other side of the city. It takes 90 minutes on public transportation to get home! Crazy. So on those nights it's a quick dinner or none at all!

Say you're making something like Braised Seitan with Brussels, Kale, and Sun-Dried Tomatoes for dinner. It's going to take you about an hour, but you don't need the oven. This happened to me the other night. So I split open a spaghetti squash and threw it in a pan with about a quarter-inch of water, baked at 400 degrees. Since I had a little extra time I toasted the seeds from the squash and sprinkled with some coriander. Yum! By the time my other dinner was done, I had a whole lotta squash ready and waiting for later in the week.

I stored the squash halves in a big tupperware in the fridge. The next night when I got home from yoga all I had to do was fork out the spaghetti strands and heat in a pot with a splash of water. I added fresh thyme and Earth Balance, nutritional yeast, salt and pepper. You could do any number of toppings instead but the point is, you will have a healthy dinner in no time flat.

Here are a few recipes you can try with your pre-cooked spaghetti squash if you want to get a little fancy!
http://happyherbivore.com/2008/10/fiesta-spaghetti-squash
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/02/dining/021srex.html