Thai Peanut Spaghetti Squash Bowl

Making peanut sauce is like having an old childhood friend come to visit. Not the kind of friend you avoid after spotting in the grocery store during a trip to visit your parents. Rather, the kind you actually want to see. The kind you wish you could run into more often.

This, for me at least, is how it feels when I’m whizzing away peanut sauce in the food processor. Upon first taste from the spatula, I always question myself as to why I don’t let the occasion occur more often. Peanut sauce should be a current friend, not a long lost one.

I found this recipe over on a newly discovered blog, Produce on Parade. Katie whips up some awesome vegan dishes, including the one I’m sharing with you today.

It joins a relatively new pal of mine, spaghetti squash, with that old friend I mentioned above. It’s hard to go wrong when you put those two ingredients together in a bowl, and top it with fresh herbs and salty nuts.

Consider making one and a half batches of the sauce. Heck, go crazy and double it and you could have leftovers to dip tomorrow’s broccoli in. I tend to like things on the saucy side, so I upped the amounts listed in the recipe below. If your tastes lean the same way, I suggest you do the same.

Thai Peanut Spaghetti Squash Bowl

Yield: Serves 4

Adapted via Produce on Parade

Ingredients

For The Bowl:
1 large spaghetti squash, roasted
1 head of broccoli florets, chopped
1 medium sweet potato, diced
1/2 cup chopped peanuts, toasted
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1/4 cup fresh mint, chopped
For The Sauce:
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup natural peanut butter
1/2 Tbsp. erythritol or sugar
1 Tbsp. sesame oil
1 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 Tbsp. sliced fresh ginger
1/2 tsp. fresh ground chili paste
1 lime, peeled and chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350F. Cut the squash in half lengthwise. Gently remove seeds. Place the two halves on a baking sheet, face down. Bake for about 1 hour, or until squash seems tender and strings are easy to remove. A knife tip should pierce the outside fairly easily.
Use a fork to scoop out the squash's meaty strings.
When there are about 15 minutes left for the squash. Place the chopped nuts on a baking sheet and toast for about 10-15 minutes. Remove and allow to cool.
While the squash cooks, steam the yam until soft, 10-15 minutes. Steam broccoli, until cooked but still crisp, about 6 minutes.
Add all of the sauce ingredients to a blender and blend on high until smooth and creamy. (I added half of the cilantro to the squash). Mix with squash and veggies. Top with nuts and chopped herbs.

http://foodfitnessfreshair.com/2013/11/21/thai-peanut-spaghetti-squash-bowl/