Make Light of the Peanut Sauce Over Spaghetti Squash and Other Yummy Bites

This meal turned into a smorgasbord.  I had a lot of ideas and a lot of food that needed to be used...and the result was Spaghetti Squash with Peanut Sauce, Curry Roasted Cauliflower and Brussels Sprouts, Zucchini Pizzas, and Sesame Ginger Cod.  Just a few of my favorite things. 

I must say that it was a hard choice as to what we liked the most, because it was all so very good - but in the end (while licking the peanut sauce off the plate...) we decided the peanut sauce was surely the best of the best.  I have a feeling like I'll be making that again verrrrrry soon. 

Zucchini Pizzas

These turned out absolutely delicious - and much more like pizza than I was imagining they would be...

1 large Zucchini, cut into rounds, approximately 3/4" thick, with the centers scooped out just a bit with a grapefruit spoon (or knife) to give the sauce a boat to sit in...be careful not to poke through the bottom. 
Pizza Sauce (or marinara)
Mozzarella

Feta (we used fat-free from Sam's)
Italian Seasoning
Garlic Powder
Parsley, chopped
Pepperoni (we used turkey, but whatever kind you like is fine!)
Parmesan

Heat oven to 450 degrees.  Spray a pan with cooking spray, as well as all of the zucchini rounds.  Season with garlic powder. Spoon sauce into the rounds.  Top in order with the ingredients above - or whatever ingredients you so choose!  We just kept it simple.  Bake until the cheese starts to brown and your pepperonis are crispy!

Curry Roasted Cauliflower and Brussels Sprouts

These are three of Matt's favorite things...four, if you count the roasted part.

1 head Cauliflower - cut into slices so there are flat pieces - you won't use the whole head.
2 cups Brussels Sprouts - cut into slices
1/4 cup Curry Powder
1 tsp Coriander
1 tbsp Salt
1 tbsp Red Pepper Flakes
Cooking Spray

Heat oven to 500 degrees. Place sliced vegetables in a bowl, coat with cooking spray.  Add seasonings a little at a time and mix together thoroughly.  Cover pan with foil, spray with cooking spray.  Place a single layer of vegetables on the pan, not too close together or they'll steam, not roast.  Bake for approximately 15 minutes, turn vegetables, bake another 10 minutes until crispy/browned.  Eat up!  Time is approximate - just keep an eye on them.  I really have no idea how long it was.  Note:  These are fabulous with Peanut Sauce.

Peanut Sauce is one of those things that you can't help but love.  Each time I eat it though, the calorie register is going cha-ching, cha-ching in my head (of course it is simply a background noise to my "mmming" over how delicious it is).  This recipe lightens it up and allows less use of peanut butter without the sacrifice of the peanut butter taste!

Lighten It Up Peanut Butter Sauce over Spaghetti Squash

Yet another recipe reinventing the massive amounts of spaghetti squash that we have (I think we counted 14 remaining last weekend). 

First off - this recipe requires the use of a pre-made Cashew Carrot Ginger Soup (originally found at Big Lots, but we will be reordering via Amazon) as shown below:

If you don't want to order this, you could probably use light coconut milk as a replacement, though you would have to use more peanut butter.  They also make powdered peanut butter - which I'm going to look into as a replacement for high-calorie peanut butter.

Spaghetti Squash (or fish or vegetables or just a bowl) to put the sauce over.
1 cup Cashew Carrot Ginger Soup
1/4 cup Peanut Butter
1 tbsp Splenda
1 tsp Honey
1/4 cup Soy Sauce
2 tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar
3 dashes of Fish Sauce
2 tbsp Cilantro (chopped)
1 tbsp Ginger (grated)
1 tbsp Garlic (minced)
1/2 tsp Lemon Grass - we found this lemongrass paste at Walmart - the BEST and so completely convenient.
1 tsp Lime Juice

I let the soup and peanut butter come together in a pan over med-low heat and then added the remaining ingredients... this was a Just Keep Tasting recipe since it was a complete experiment and I didn't even have a recipe to base it off of.  You may want to adjust yours to taste, but Just Keep Tasting until you like it! 

Once you get it where you want it... you'll want to put it on everything!  The recipe above made enough for approximately 4 small servings - I would recommend doubling the recipe.  Also - the addition of Sriracha is a moral imperative when talking peanut butter sauce.

Just Keep Tasting until you get it right!  Who knew peanut butter sauce could be so light!