This dish was inspired by my love of crispy basil leaves when you simmer them in oil to infused the flavor. Also, I saw gorgeous brightly colored rainbow chard in the store and knew I needed to create a dish that combined both!
The spaghetti squash is the main part of this dish, however, the real shining star that gives it the intense flavor is the olive oil that is infused with garlic, basil and chili flake.
Ingredients:
2 medium spaghetti squash
5 large rainbow chard leaves
6 tbsp olive oil
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
10-12 fresh basil leaves
1/2 tsp chili flake
1 tsp salt
1 tsp honey
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan
Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 F°.
Cut squash into rounds, remove the seeds and place on a baking tray. Drizzle with 1 tbsp olive oil and 1/2 tsp salt. Roast for 30 minutes until soft enough to shred with a fork. If the squash is tough to cut, you can place it in the heated oven for 10-15 minutes to help it soften.
Place 5 tbsp of olive oil, garlic, basil and chili flake in a large sauce pan and let sit for 15 minutes to begin melding flavors.
After 15 minutes, turn on stove to low heat and simmer until the garlic and basil crisp up.
Strain the garlic and basil out of the olive oil then return the oil to the pan.
Turn on medium heat and sauté rainbow chard until wilted.
When squash is done cooking, use a fork to pull strands of “spaghetti” and transfer it to the pan with chard.
Add 1/2 tsp salt, a splash of honey and the shredded Parmesan and mix together gently.
Garnish the dish with the crisped up basil and garlic and some additional Parmesan and olive oil drizzle.
*I chose to remove some of the thick stem from the chard because it was quite hard. You can chop it right up and add it in if you prefer. Both ways are fine!
*This recipe yields 4 servings.
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