Summer spaghetti is a lightened up version of the family favorite, made with chicken, fresh tomatoes and plenty of seasonal vegetables. Serve over regular pasta or a vegetable pasta.

Spaghetti has to be one of the all-time family favorites for most people. It’s easy and unbelievably satisfying.

We love our go-to ground turkey spaghetti with homemade sauce. It’s just so warm and comforting.

And yet in the summertime, sometimes I want that feeling of comfort without feeling too weighed down by my dinner. Cause, bathing suit season, you know? 

 
And so, summer spaghetti!

This spaghetti is bursting with summer veggies, on-hand chicken instead of turkey or beef, and fresh tomatoes instead of a canned or homemade sauce (but you can use those, too).

It's also very versatile too, because you can definitely swap in ground chicken or ground turkey. And feel free to use canned tomatoes or marinara sauce instead of the fresh.

It's summer after all, so let's keep things easy. 😊

This spaghetti dinner is super easy and comes out tasting so light, so fresh, so summery! And it delivers all the comforts of spaghetti.

You can serve this over regular whole wheat spaghetti noodles, or if you’re really looking to go bikini-friendly, sub in some spaghetti squash for the noodles.

That’s my favorite way to go. Bring on some extra veggies, please!

Any which way you serve it, you’re in for a plate full of spaghetti goodness, summer-style.

I hope you give it a try and enjoy!

XO,

Kathryn

P.S. Do you have any family favorites that you adapt as the seasons change?

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Yield: 4 servings

Summer chicken and veggie spaghetti

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Summer spaghetti is a lightened up version of the family favorite, made with chicken, fresh tomatoes and plenty of seasonal vegetables. Serve over regular pasta or a vegetable pasta.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion, diced small (about 1 cup)
• 1 medium zucchini, chopped
• 1 medium yellow squash, chopped
• 4-6 mushrooms, quartered (I used white button mushrooms)
• 3-4 roma tomatoes, chopped (or you can sub with a can of diced tomatoes)
• ½ cup marinara (homemade or store bought)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
• ½ teaspoon black pepper, divided
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
• 1-2 cups cooked shredded chicken (see notes)
• ½ cup fresh basil, chopped

For serving:

• Freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• Cooked spaghetti squash or whole-wheat spaghetti noodles

Instructions

1. Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add onion and saute for 2-3 minutes. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper. Add zucchini, squash and mushrooms and saute for another 5 minutes, until tender. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper
2. Add tomatoes and seasonings and saute until the tomatoes start to break down a bit and the mixture gets more juicy. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper.
3. Add the marinara - using as much as you need/want to get it to the right sauciness level. That’s a technical term. And you know, sprinkle with a little more salt and pepper.
4. Add the cooked chicken and stir until warmed through.
5. Turn off heat and serve over spaghetti squash or whole-wheat spaghetti noodles.

Notes

You can certainly use the more traditional ground beef or ground turkey instead of chicken in this recipe. Just saute it first and once it’s about halfway cooked, add the onion and continue with the recipe.

You can serve this with real noodles or with spaghetti squash noodles. For spaghetti squash, just cut it in half, scoop out the seeds and inner goop. Place flesh side down on a roasting pan and roast at 400 for about 45 minutes.

Remove, let cool a bit and use a fork to scrape the inside of the spaghetti squash, which will get you the lovely strands.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 314Total Fat: 10gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 52mgSodium: 797mgCarbohydrates: 38gFiber: 8gSugar: 14gProtein: 24g