Spaghetti Squash Pie

Spaghetti pie is a comfort-food superstar, but it's also a calorie catastrophe. Not ours! You'll flip when you try this... 

Prep: 10 minutes 
Cook: 1 hour and 25 minutes 
Cool: 10 minutes 

Ingredients:

1 spaghetti squash (at least 4 1/2 lbs.)
1 lb. extra-lean ground beef (4% fat or less)
2 cups canned crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup (about 4 large) egg whites or fat-free egg substitute
1/2 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
Seasonings: onion powder, garlic powder, salt, Italian seasoning 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a large pie pan with nonstick spray.

Microwave squash for 6 minutes, or until soft enough to cut. Once cool enough to handle, halve lengthwise; scoop out and discard seeds. Fill a large baking pan with 1/2 inch water and place squash halves in the pan, cut sides down.

Bake until tender, about 40 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring a large skillet sprayed with nonstick spray to medium-high heat. Add ground beef, and season with 1/2 tsp. onion powder, 1/2 tsp. garlic powder, and 1/4 tsp. salt. Cook and crumble for about 5 minutes, until fully cooked. Transfer to a large bowl.

Remove squash from oven, but leave oven on. Use a fork to scrape out spaghetti squash strands. Place in a strainer to drain excess moisture.

Thoroughly blot dry, removing as much moisture as possible. Transfer 5 cups squash strands to the large bowl. (Reserve any extra squash for another time.)

Add canned crushed tomatoes, egg whites/substitute, and 1 tsp. each onion powder, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning. Mix thoroughly. Transfer mixture to the pie pan and smooth out the surface.

Bake until slightly firm, about 25 minutes.

Sprinkle with cheese. Bake until cheese has melted and lightly browned, about 10 minutes.

Let cool for 10 minutes before slicing. 

MAKES 4 SERVINGS 

1/4th of pan: 300 calories, 8g total fat (4g sat fat), 645mg sodium, 22.5g carbs, 5g fiber, 9.5g sugars, 34g protein -- SmartPoints™ value 4*