Two dear friends gifted us with homegrown spaghetti squash and three bunches of kale over the weekend. Sunday I used one bunch of kale to replace some of the cabbage called for in the adzuki bean chili recipe in my cookbook Vegan Pressure Cooking.
I used half of the cabbage called for and tons of kale and it was fantastic.
I wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to do with the spaghetti squash so I just plopped the whole thing in my 8-quart pressure cooker. I cooked it on high pressure for 18 minutes, then used a natural release (thanks to Joyce from my Vegan Pressure Cooking Facebook Group for the technique). I scooped out the seeds and air fried them for a snack.
I placed the squash seeds in a loose leaf tea infuser (to keep them from flying around) with a little seasoning and air fried for about 8 minutes at 390°F. Such a fun little snack!
Then I scraped the squash with a fork, which turns into “spaghetti” strands, and stored it in the refrigerator overnight.
Last night I turned that plain, unseasoned orange veggie into this spaghetti squash stir fry.
Here’s how it went down.
In the morning I cooked a cup of brown lentils with 2 1/2 cups water and 1/2 teaspoon each of chili powder, cayenne pepper, ground cumin, and Mexican oregano. I cooked on high pressure for 10 minutes (actually 12 but I live at 6,200 feet – sea level folks, cook for 10 minutes) and used a natural release. After allowing the lentils to cool, I stored them in the refrigerator.
Okay, food prep time!
I combined 1 teaspoon of lime chicken salt (No chickens involved! It’s vegan! ) with water in a large skillet over high heat. I added onion, garlic, and chopped celery and heated until the onion and celery were soft. I added the spaghetti squash (4 cups), cooked lentils (3 cups), a bunch of kale (chopped), and 1 cup salsa. I stirred it to combine well, covered, and reduced the heat to medium-low and let simmer for about 10 minutes. After simmering I added about 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few more shakes of the lime chicken salt and then served in a bowl with a dollop of salsa. It yielded about 4 servings.
This was so incredibly tasty! And, bonus, super healthy: It’s loaded with potassium, vitamins A and C and boasts lots of protein, calcium and iron. Hurray!
