[4star]

Ok well I've tried spaghetti squash but it didn't turn out to be a good substitute for me although I do like it and will use it for other dishes. What has made a good spaghetti stretcher is shredded zucchini that you blanche off in the pasta water in the last few minutes of cooking. It took my 1 cup portion of pasta and turned it into a 2 cup portion for just 40 extra calories. It was so fresh-tasting too without overwhelming the flavor of the dish. This will be my go-to trick for eating spaghetti from here on out! I am just amazed how good it was and that I could make the calorie exchange and love it!

Just typing this made me want to make it this weekend! I am so excited I can work spaghetti dinners into my plan and not have to scrimp on calories all day to make it happen! Whohoo!

[ma26]

Yum plus you get extra veggie nutrition. Thanks for the tip. I will be trying this.

[mammasita]

Indeed. I use brown rice spaghetti or spinach spaghetti (this was super YUMMY) and add zucchini or any veg I can get my hands on to bulk it up.

[thesarabear]

This sounds really good, 4star. I'm gluten intolerant and the corn pasta is good but not very healthy

This probably sounds funny, but another trick I saw around the interwebs is to substitute chickpeas for the pasta if you're using a hearty red sauce. I would post a link to a recipe but I can't yet. That would provide a lot of protein! I plan on trying that soon. I bet using something like white kidney beans would be good too.

[124chicksinger]

...and if you love mac N cheese.... you can lighten it up by adding cooked (I like boiled) cauliflower broken into pieces and well-drained. My family absolutely loves it! By the way, there is a vegetable shredder called a spiral slicer that takes carrots, zuccini, parsnips, etc, and renders them into long spaghetti like pieces. "Google" spiral slicer. A+ and thumbs up!

[toobig]

Sounds good, thanks for the tip