Spice up your life with a little Puttanesca sauce!

So in an effort to UP my veggie intake in more creative ways, I have adopted the spaghetti squash as my new go to happy little vegetable. It is versatile and so easy to make, so don't let it confuse you with its tough exterior. All you gotta do is cut it in half, scoop out the seeds, making sure to leave all the squashy flesh inside. Drizzle with a little olive oil and a sprinkle of garlic powder, salt and pepper and then place cut side down on a greased baking sheet. Roast at 450 for 30 minutes then remove from oven, careful it is hot!! I like to let it cool for a minute and then hold each half of the squash with an oven mitt, then one at a time I take a fork to the flesh of the squash and pull it out in downward strokes. This will pull the squash into spaghetti like strings! Add a little more salt and pepper and a pat of butter and some parmesan and you have a delicious meal or side dish! BUT if you want to take this creation over the top.....make a robust and spicy puttanesca sauce to go over top of the spaghetti squash. A delightful and delicious way to stay healthy, cut the carbs and still be ever the bit satisfied! Really! This is addicting! So my method for puttanesca is a little bit recipe a little bit taste as I go, cause I love to adjust my seasonings to my tastbuds, so feel free to make this sauce as spicy as you like it! So in a sauté pan, sauté 2 tbs olive oil, 3 garlic cloves and 1/2 of a small onion, all diced up! Once translucent, add tsp basil, tsp oregano, and a generous pinch of crushed red pepper, and salt and pepper (good sprinkle of both). Then add 2 anchovies, or a big squirt of anchovy paste to the pan and let it melt into the ingredients. This is an important step! Puttanesca gets a robust salty flavor from the anchovies, no worries you won't taste anything fishy! Then the important part, chopped green olives, about 8. Of course you can do capers and black olives instead, a traditional favorite, but the green olives are what I had on hand recently, and they played the part deeeeeliciously! Last, add a large can of diced tomatoes, drained. Sauté all ingredients together until hot and spicy, adjust salt and pepper if needed and crushed red pepper if you want it a bit spicier! Right at then end, before serving I like to take my mashed potato masher and squish the tomatoes a bit to make the sauce a little juicy along with the chunks of tomato. And if you need to thin the sauce out a bit, a little water will do the trick, but make sure it gets warmed through with all the saucy ingredients. All there is to do next is pour a generous portion over your spaghetti squash and tada, you got a dinner that will actually taste soooooo good, you wasn't believe it is making you thinner! Lesson learned here, if you're going to cut your carbs, do it deeeeeliciously!