au gratin | cookingonthebrightside

Um, hey there. Remember me?

Yeah, I started this blog and was sharing some delicious recipes with y’all and then, well, I fell off the face of the earth for two weeks.

Over two weeks people! I didn’t even realize it until yesterday – I thought I was just tardy by one week…psh.

I am so sorry. Thank you for coming back. I mean, one week I got home late every night of the week and had stuff to do when I got home (like meetings, running to a kickball game, etc.). Then last week – well, last week was for fun – I got to go to Florida for another bachelorette party! And, you get to benefit from it because I cooked lots of goodies that I will be sharing with you over the next few weeks!

For now, I will try to make amends by sharing one of my favorite dishes that I figured out how to make a bit better for those who are not content to hide under baggy sweaters this fall! (Although they are really cozy!)

Skinny Au Gratin Potatoes (Serves 3 / 3WW pts. each)

1 medium russet potato

I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter Spray

1/2 cup fat-free milk

1/2 cup fat-free shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 Tbsp. white whole-wheat flour

1/2 tsp. minced garlic

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1/2 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease a small au gratin (or baking) dish and spray with butter spray.

Wash and dry potato and cut into 1/4 inch pieces.

Whisk together milk, flour, garlic and black pepper.

Add potatoes to baking dish and pour milk mixture on top.

Cover with foil and bake 30 minutes.

Remove foil and bake 15 more minutes. Add cheese and return to oven for 5 more minutes allowing cheese to melt.

This is pretty much delicious served with anything, but nothing beats steak and potatoes!

Enjoy y’all, and I promise, I won’t disappear again!

The word of the day is exhaustion!

It’s NBA playoff time and my Memphis Grizzlies are in the middle of a series with the L.A. Clippers. The game Monday night ended up starting at about 7:40 L.A. time…which means it was 9:40 here. Oh, and it went into overtime. Which means yours truly finally went to bed (feeling very depressed after a loss) around 1 a.m.

Coffee was a necessity Tuesday morning. Even more so than usual.

So I’m fading right now (as I write this Tuesday evening) and the sun isn’t even down yet – but have no fear, I have a delicious and diet-friendly recipe to share with you!

Have you ever used spaghetti squash? It’s kind of awesome. You cook it – and it smells awesome. But then you just scrape at it with a fork and it shreds into strands that look like spaghetti.

Soooo I mixed mine with onions, sour cream and cheese and called it a main dish. It was “Meatless Monday” in our house – and man, was it delicious!

Spaghetti Squash Au Gratin (Serves 2-4)

1 medium spaghetti squash

1/3 cup chopped onion

1 Tbsp. margarine

1/2 tsp. dried thyme

1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

1/2 tsp. minced garlic

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. black pepper

1/4 tsp. garlic salt

1/2 cup fat-free sour cream

2/3 cup fat-free shredded cheddar cheese

Heat oven to 375.

Using a very sharp knife, cut spaghetti squash in half. I start on one side, gradually working my way down and around the squash until it comes apart. Scoop out seeds.

Sprinkle black pepper and garlic salt inside the flesh and place in a deep baking pan, flesh side down. Bake 20-25 minutes. Then flip and bake another 20 minutes until tender. Let cool.

While squash is baking, saute onions in margarine with garlic, thyme and red pepper flakes. Cook until tender. Set aside.

Now take your cooled squash and begin scraping the flesh with a fork – it will shred really easily. I got about 3 cups of shredded “spaghetti”. Add to a bowl lined with paper towels to absorb any excess moisture.