It’s a comfort food to the rescue day! I have an easy, cheesy, and low-carb healthy Spaghetti Squash Casserole recipe for you. Whether you are looking for a meal to match your cozy night on the couch…or are already anticipating the week of easy, healthy dinners you are going to need after the weekend, this casserole has you covered!
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Growing up, spaghetti squash was an “on the side” affair…and even then, only if was topped with an appropriate level of butter and brown sugar. I still enjoy baked spaghetti squash this way every now and then for the sake of nostalgia—and because who am I pretending to be here? It’s delicious. I’ve also come to adore spaghetti squash as a component of more savory sides such as Roasted Spaghetti Squash with Parmesan Mushrooms and main dish recipes like Taco Spaghetti Squash Boats, Spaghetti Squash Boats with Chicken and Bacon, and today’s Italian-inspired Spaghetti Squash Casserole.
The casserole filling is an easy mix of roasted and shredded spaghetti squash, diced tomatoes, bell peppers, Italian spices, and ground turkey (you can do the Spaghetti Squash Casserole with chicken instead if you prefer). All of the ingredients cook together in a single pan, and you can even get a head start by roasting the spaghetti squash up to three days in advance.
The Making of Spaghetti Squash Casserole
If spaghetti squash has been mostly a side hustle on your dinner plate too, this Spaghetti Squash Casserole with ground turkey is the perfect way to explore its versatility in main-dish recipes. The squash’s neutral flavor makes it easy to blend with a wide range of flavors, it adds bulk to just about any recipe, and it’s packed with vitamins C and A and high in fiber.
It also keeps this Spaghetti Squash Casserole low carb. One serving of this healthy casserole has just 8 grams of carbs and a whopping 20 grams of protein!
A shower of low-fat mozzarella on top gives this casserole that iconic bubbly, cheesy casserole “lid,” but if you are avoiding dairy or want to make this Spaghetti Squash Casserole Paleo, you can always omit it. Household members divided on the cheese? Keep it on the side and allow each person to sprinkle on his or her own.
Make Ahead and Storage Tips
- To Make Ahead. Spaghetti squash can be roasted, shredded, and stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days. When ready to make the casserole, add to the filling in Step 2 as directed.
- To Store. Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- To Freeze. I haven’t tried freezing the casserole yet, but as a reader pointed out in the comments (thanks, Andrea!), spaghetti squash can get watery when thawed. If that doesn’t bother you, here’s what to do: Bake as directed, let cool, and then tightly cover and freeze for up to 3 months. Let thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Heat in a 350 degree F oven, covered, until warmed through. Uncover and bake 5 or so additional minutes, until hot and bubbly.
More Delicious Spaghetti Squash Recipes
For a little step by step, I have a new video for you below. If you try this recipe, I’d love to know what you think. Thanks as always for your kind reviews and the 5-star ratings too. I can’t say enough how much they mean to me and how helpful they are to others who might be considering the recipe too!
Spaghetti Squash Casserole
Video
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Ingredients
- 1 small/medium spaghetti squash about 2 pounds
- 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 pound 93% lean ground turkey
- 1 small red onion diced
- 1 green bell pepper cored and diced
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 can 14.5-ounce diced tomatoes with Italian spices, drained
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasonings of choice or a mix of oregano, basil, and thyme
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes reduce to 1/4 teaspoon if sensitive to spice
- 1 cup freshly grated part-skim mozzarella or provolone cheese divided
- Chopped fresh parsley or basil
Instructions
- Place a rack in the center of your oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Roast the spaghetti squash according to this recipe for Roasted Spaghetti Squash. When cool enough to handle, pull the squash strings out of the squash's center with a fork and transfer to a large mixing bowl. The squash strings should look like spaghetti.
- Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Heat the olive oil in a large, deep skillet over medium high. Add the turkey, onion, bell pepper, salt, and black pepper. Cook, breaking apart the meat, until meat is browned and the vegetables are tender, about 8 minutes. Add the drained tomatoes, garlic, Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes. Let cook until most of the liquid from the tomatoes has cooked off, about 4 minutes, and then add the reserved squash. Cook and stir until most of the remaining liquid has cooked off, about 1 to 2 minutes more, increasing the heat if needed. Stir in 1/2 cup of the shredded cheese. There may be some liquid remaining in the pan.
- Lightly coat a deep 8×8-inch baking dish or 2-quart casserole dish with nonstick spray. With a slotted spoon, scoop the squash mixture into the pan in an even layer, discarding any excess liquid (some in the pan is OK—just not too much). Bake, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup cheese, and then return to the oven and bake until the cheese melts, about 5 to 10 additional minutes. For an extra-golden-brown top, place the casserole under the broiler for a few minutes. Remove from the oven, sprinkle with parsley and/or basil, and let rest 5 minutes. Serve hot.
Notes
- Make it ahead: Spaghetti squash can be roasted, shredded, and stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days. When ready to make the casserole, add to the filling in Step 2 as directed.
- Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- I haven’t tried freezing the casserole yet, but as a reader pointed out in the comments (thanks, Andrea!), spaghetti squash can get watery when thawed. If that doesn’t bother you, here’s what to do: Bake as directed, let cool, and then tightly cover and freeze for up to 3 months. Let thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Heat in a 350 degree F oven, covered, until warmed through. Uncover and bake 5 or so additional minutes, until hot and bubbly.
- To make Paleo or Whole30 friendly: omit the cheese
I make this recipe ALOT! I do make a variation, however. Instead of using a casserole dish, I shred the squash into strands and leave them in the shell (bowl). I make the meat mixture as instructed, although I do not add any cheese to it. Once the meat mixture is done, I add it to the squash shells and toss lightly to mix, then add cheese lightly to the top. Often I will use parmesan versus mozzerella. I bake til browned and serve! It’s so delicious, and healthy with the ground turkey and less cheese. Save leftover meat for another use! I love it and crave it often! I’ve been making it for a couple years and am just now getting around to leaving a review – try it, you will love it!
So glad to hear, thank you Cindy!
Nice recipe! I cooked my spaghetti squash in the crockpot because it’s so easy to prepare this way. I omitted the mozzarella, but I added about 1/2 c. shredded Parmesan Reggiano cheese into the meat mixture and then sprinkled a little on top. I also had some artichoke hearts that needed to be used, so I chopped those up and added them, too. My meal was delicious! Thank you!
So glad you enjoyed it, Carol! Thank you!
Today am making this casserole for the second time – so good. What amazed me is that the spaghettil squash strands stay crunchy. This way you have a nice texture instead of a soft, mushy casserole.
So glad. you enjoyed it, Noel! Thank you!
We loved this recipe with turkey but have since stopped eating it. Do you think there’s an equal substitution for turkey? Or does that make the whole dish
Glad you enjoyed the casserole, Samantha! Other readers have tried ground pork, ground chorizo, ground beef and ground chicken, so really the possibilities are endless.
This is a great recipe. It’s also a great method for creating other flavors with the base ingredients. This one will go into my repeat recipes!
So glad to hear you enjoyed it, AJ! Thank you!
Great recipe on its own but had to get rid of some veggies in frig ….sooo..i added 4 large sliced button mushrooms, about 1 1/2 cups home made marinara with seasonings instead of canned tomatoes, 2 handfuls of spinach and then chopped to the ground turkey mixture. Added mushrooms when adding onions. Added chopped spinach after about 6 minutes then cooked down.. Added marinara when tomatoes should have been used, then cooked down… Wonderful!!
So glad to hear, Cathy! Thank you!
Thinking of making this for an expecting friend. Does it freeze well? Thanks!!
Hi Meg! To Freeze. I haven’t tried freezing the casserole yet, but as a reader pointed out in the comments (thanks, Andrea!), spaghetti squash can get watery when thawed. If that doesn’t bother you, here’s what to do: Bake as directed, let cool, and then tightly cover and freeze for up to 3 months. Let thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Heat in a 350 degree F oven, covered, until warmed through. Uncover and bake 5 or so additional minutes, until hot and bubbly. Hope this helps!
I’m Sorry as this is probably going to sound totally ridiculous to all of you. Most things have excess water in them after freezing them, that we don’t want. I understand the Squash becomes an “unusual” watery dish after freezing. A TIP for whenever I put something in a DISH in the FREEZER~☆I put a piece of WAX PAPER then PAPER TOWELS before putting Lid on☆~ I usually thaw it out in fridge. When it’s thawed, I do a QUICK FLIP to let most of the extra water run into the PAPER TOWELS. IF it’s something I want the Juice for obviously I DON’T do this as it can take to much flavor away accidentally. IF it’s to thin, thicken the liquid and add spices. This doesn’t help for the Squash, I know I’m Sorry. Just thought I’d share, it’s helped me in the past.
Thanks for the tip, Debbie!
Love this so much!! I may Cooke the squash 35 minutes so maybe it would be less mushy? We still 🥰 it. We used beef but my friend that gave me this recipe used turkey and I prefer that. So good ! Thank you!!!
Hi Darlene, you could definitely cook it a little less to get the texture you are looking for. Glad to hear you enjoyed it!
Perfect! Served it with a green salad and crusty bread.Followed the exact recipe
Great to hear, Violet!
This was so good! I will be making it again.
Thank you Susan!
We absolutely loved it!
I didn’t have mozzarella, so I used Monterey. I didn’t have bell pepper, but had canned green chiles and it was wonderful! Great recipe!
Thanks Gabe!