While I was in college at Ole Miss, I discovered Ro-tel Dip. For those of you that don’t know what Ro-tel is – it is melted Velvetta Cheese and a can of Ro-tel, which is a can of green chili and tomatoes. There are different varieties of Ro-Tel in varying degrees of hotness and spiciness. Anyway, I could sit and eat an entire bowl of Ro-tel Dip. The processed cheese dip is so bad for you, but I admit – it tastes so good. Of course, my stomach would be a mess after, but I was young and clueless!
The other day I was reminiscing about Ro-tel and picked up a can at the store. I had prepped a spaghetti squash on my Sunday food prep day to save time, along with all of my other veggies for the week; I highly recommend doing this to save yourself some serious time! So when I was wondering what I could make for dinner and felt like I had nothing in my house to eat, I got an idea when I saw this small spaghetti squash and a can of Ro-tel in my pantry. I created a vegan stuffed spaghetti squash with Mexican flavors. It’s a healthy Ro-tel dish!
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Cheesy Ro-tel Stuffed Spaghetti Squash (vegan & gluten-free)
A healthy version of a vegan Ro-tel Dip stuffed Spaghetti Squash with Mexican flavors.
Tip: (1) I’ve been playing around with vegan “meat crumbles”. My favorite is Beyond Meat Feisty Crumbles. However, I feel like they still need some extra flavor. I added extra taco seasoning, If you’re not vegan you can just use regular ground beef if you’re not vegan, or just omit all “meat”. (3) Taco Seasoning – 1 teaspoons is mild and 1 tablespoon is spicy! (4) Be aware of the spiciness of your Ro-tel and buy the can best suited to taste/heat tolerance. I got the one with Diced Tomatoes With Lime Juice & Cilantro Mexican Festival. (5) Buy a large Spaghetti Squash and double the recipe. I made a large one (~7.75 cups of cooked squash) that served 10.
Credit: My Real Dish
Ingredients
Squash
- 1 Small Spaghetti Squash (~4 cups cooked squash)
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 1 cup frozen corn
- 1 can Ro-tel (I used Ro-Tel Diced Tomatoes With Lime Juice & Cilantro Mexican Festival, drained)
- 1 cup “Meat Crumbles” or Ground Beef if not vegan (optional)
- 1 teaspoons to 1 tablespoon taco seasoning depending on desired spice (I used Trader Joe’s see tips for more info)
Vegan Cheese Sauce
- 1 cup cashews (soaked for 4 hours, or soaked in boiling water for 10 minutes)
- 2 tablespoons lemon (~1 small lemon juiced)
- 2.5 tablespoons tapioca starch
- 1 teaspoon real salt
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1/2 cup vegetable stock (gluten-free, MSG-free)
Directions
- Boil water for cashews and soak them in boiling water (if you didn’t soak them in advance)
- Heat oven to 400.
- Prepare your spaghetti squash next. Slice the squash in half, place the squash insides down into a roasting pan, add a little water (~1/2 inch) to the roasting pan, and cook squash for 30 – 45 minutes until it is tender when pricked with a fork. Begin prepping the rest of the meal while the squash cooks. Or, be like me and prepare the squash in advance so you can come home and whip together a healthy meal in 25 minutes!
- While the spaghetti squash is cooking, prepare the vegan cheese sauce. Rinse the soaked cashews thoroughly until the water runs clear (this helps you easily digest the nuts). Place Vegan Cheese Sauce ingredients in the Vitamix or high powered blender and mix until thoroughly combined and smooth.
- Scoop out the seeds and discard (I use an ice cream scooper), scoop the squash out of the shell and place in a mixing bowl, with cheese sauce, taco seasoning, can of Ro-tel (drained), meat crumbles, peas, and corn. Stir until evenly combined.
- Place squash back into the shells into the pan and cook for 20 minutes in the oven or until browned.
What is your favorite junk food?
Nice recipe
Thanks!
thanks!
Such an awesome dish🔝 and love the vegan cheese recipe👏
Thank you!
What a cute idea. Great for entertaining.
Thanks!
This is so tempting!!!
Hope you try it! Tag me if you make it!
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This looks gorgeous and I love its enticing flavors ! Your vegan cheese sauce caught my full attention.
Thank you! Vegan cheese sauce and be very hit or miss – this one is good 🙂
Lovely. Now, I am going to eat. Enjoy your day ;O)
Have a great day and eat something yummy!
Wow! I’ve heard so many good things about spaghetti squash, but I think you definitely took it to the next level!! 😁
Thank you!
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