Cheesy Pesto Chicken Lasagna Stuffed Spaghetti Squash is one of our favorite dinners. Say hello to the best spaghetti squash of your life!
hellooooo gorgeous!
Skip the starchy noodles and layer all the tasty components of a cheesy pesto chicken lasagna into a perfectly tender baked spaghetti squash. I LOVE this delicious gluten-free dish!
I almost don’t want to even bother with an intro, story, or musing of any sort because, seriously, I don’t want to slow you down. I expect all of you to fling yourselves into the kitchen immediately and get to work on this bad boy. Gah! It’s SO good.
Oh hello vegetarians, I see you’re giving me some serious side eye right now! Not to worry! You’re still required to haul your veggie-loving butt into the kitchen as well. Sub meaty mushrooms [buttons or bellas] for the chicken and maybe add a few sauteed onions and you’re good. to. go.
Um, I wasn’t joking.
Print the recipe below and get this in your face.
Please and thank you!
Cheesy Pesto Chicken Lasagna Stuffed Spaghetti Squash
We can’t stop making this easy cheesy l0w-carb lasagna — Grab a spaghetti squash and meet me in the kitchen!
Cheesy Pesto Chicken Lasagna Stuffed Spaghetti Squash
Ingredients
- 1 spaghetti squash (approx. 2-3 pounds)
- 2 cups chopped chicken (cooked via your favorite method)
- 1/4 cup pesto (homemade or store bought)
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 1/4-1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- 3/4 tsp garlic powder
- 3/4 tsp dried parsley
- 1/2 tsp Italian Seasoning blend (Mrs. Dash is my favorite)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup chopped tomato plus extra for topping
- 2-4 oz mozzarella, sliced or grated
- fresh parsley and/or basil to garnish
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 400°F.
- Slice spaghetti squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds.
- To prevent sticking, rub the rim of the squash's flesh with a teeny bit of olive oil or simply place a little water inside your baking dish. Both work great!
- Place inside a baking dish or atop rimmed, lined baking sheet (some liquid will escape) and roast face-down for 40-60 minutes.
- Cooking time will depend on size and the once rock-hard exterior of the squash will be visibly softened with a tender inside. Fluff with a fork to reveal the spaghetti-like strands of squash. Leave on baking sheet/dish.
- MAKE-AHEAD TIP: The squash can be roasted and stored in the fridge for up to 3-4 days awaiting it's stuffage with your lovely lasagna ingredients. You can also make the whole shebang one weekend and pop it in the fridge until about 35 minutes before dinnertime. Wind up with a little bit leftover? It reheats marvelously the following day! Now let's get back to the recipe!
- Cook chicken via your favorite method or utilize leftoever or rotissere chicken to use in the lasagna. Chop chicken into bite sized pieces and toss in 1/4 cup of pesto. Set aside.
- Next whisk up an egg yolk (or grab the whites from one large egg) into your ricotta and add freshly grated parmesan cheese, garlic powder, dried parsley, salt, and your favorite Italian seasoning blend. Set aside.
- Top the cooked spaghetti squash halves with chopped tomato or a thin layer of your favorite red sauce. Either work depending on preference and ingredients handy you can also use both if desired.
- Top with the seasoned ricotta.
- Next add your pesto chicken. It'll start to look mile high at this point, just go with it!
- Sprinkle with some extra chopped tomato and top with sliced or grated mozzarella and cover the baking dish in foil, leaving a little room at the top (like a tent) so the cheese doesn't stick.
- Bake at 350°F for around 35-40 minutes or until hot and bubbly.
- Garnish with fresh parsley and/or basil leaves and dig in!
- Leftovers taste phenomenal the next day and can be reheated via oven or microwave; up to you!
Notes
Nutrition
Make-Ahead Spaghetti Squash Lasagna Tips + Tricks
Now I know you’re looking at that bake time and thinking “ain’t nobody got time for that!” But here’s the thing: you can bake the squash in advance.
Pop it in the oven the night before while you curl up with a book or wrestle tiny tykes into bed, just set a timer and walk away! The squash itself can be prepped up to 3-4 days in advance if needed [I do this all the flipping time, promise!] so don’t stress it one bit. You can also prep the chicken and pretty much everything else ahead of time while you’re at it.
Stuffed squash is one of my favorite fall faceplantables, and I almost always prep everything the previous day so that when the next day kicks me in the face, I have dinner ready for the oven. It makes the house smell absolutely scrumptious and is super convenient to have chilling in the fridge for a busy night. So there you have it, all time excuses have been squashed [how embarrassing!] and we’re good to go!
tip: if your sharpest, longest knife seems no match for a giant spaghetti squash, have no fear! You can pierce the skin a few times with your knife, much like you would with a potato, and microwave the squash for a minute or two before slicing!
Also, if you’d like a larger stuffing to squash ratio, feel free to scrape your spaghetti squash with a fork to release a small pile of yummy squash noodles and mix it with your pesto chicken before adding it back into the squash to bake with the mozzarella. Anything goes when stuffing a squash, now have at it!
Make this Cheesy Pesto Chicken Lasagna Stuffed Spaghetti Squash right meow!
Do you have to use the egg in this recipe?
Hi Susan! You an 100% skip the egg. It’s there to fluff the ricotta into more of a filling but can be made without.
There’s no explanation as to if you keep the spaghetti squash in the skin or if you scoop it out with a fork. Also what does it mean by “line” the spaghetti squash in step 13?? Instructions could be clearer.
Hi Barb! So for this recipe after cooking the spaghetti squash I pile on the ingredients lasagna style into each spaghetti squash boat, hence lining the inside of the squash with the ingredients. This is displayed in the photos in this post. The idea is to stir it all up when you first sit down to dig into the spaghetti squash; however, I can absolutely see how the instructions may be a bit confusing. To help I’ll write it up like I do with my other spaghetti squash recipes which are a bit more clear.
THANKS for the clarification!
Absolutely LOVED this! I was hesitant at first, as I’m not a big fan of pesto but when all the flavors came together….WOW!!! My family was scraping every little bit of squash out of the skin, I was shocked lol
One thing though…I didn’t see carbs listed in the Nutrition Facts. Can you tell me what that value would be?
Thank you for a DELICIOUS recipe!
So glad you enjoyed the recipe, Michelle! Woot! The carb content will vary based on swaps/extras, spaghetti squash size/weight, and other factors like type of pesto used so I usually try to let everyone calculate it themselves with free calculators like myfitnesspal.com etc.. Each cup (approx 101 grams) of spaghetti squash is 7 grams carbohydrate but net carbs are lower based on fiber content.
Making this for the like the 10th time! Love this recipe so much!
I must have made this four or five times before, and somehow I missed that you could substitute red sauce for the tomatoes! I think I’ll try that next time, a little less time consuming. I’m sure it’ll be just as delicious! This is my favorite squash bowl!
Sounds like the perfect excuse to make it again soon haha! Thank you Corina – I’m so glad you’re loving the recipe! xoxo
OMG so good! I mean I expected it to be good but it’s so good that I’m still thinking about it days later and wanting to make it again!
DAY = MADE!!! Crystal, I’m so happy to hear how much you loved the recipe. Thank you!
I usually don’t leave comments, but this recipe was SO GOOD that I wanted to let you know how much we loved it at my house. I’m sharing this with everyone I know who has ever expressed even the slightest interest in stuffed squash. And a few who haven’t!
I’m making this recipe again after a couple years, absolutely yummy recipe thank you so much for this genius food!
Woooot! I’m honored it made repeat status – thanks Mike!
I used canned diced tomatoes I had on hand, but this was delicious! My neighbor gave me the squash and I returned some of it back to her stuffed with this recipe.
This is the first time I’ve loved a spaghetti squash recipe. The flavors are rich without being too heavy. I’ll be sharing this with my friends and family. I anticipate it becoming a regular dish for us! Thanks for sharing!
Colleen I’m so thrilled you loved it! Thank you! <3
Wow! This was awesome. It was super easy and tasted fantastic! I used sundried tomatoes instead of regular tomatoes or sauce because they’re my favorite. Scrumptious.
best thing I have ever cooked. hands down. first time with spaghetti squash and I am in love. this took a long time but so worth it. even good leftover reheated.
wow. just wow.
How many does this serve and could you cook the squash in the microwave and then just add the ingredients and poop it in the oven
Sorry meant Pop in the oven
You can absolutely cook the squash via microwave (I’ve done this with other stuffed squash of mine and it’s a speedy lifesaver sometimes!) then add the ingredients and bake until everything is hot and bubbly! <3 I hope you adore it Lori! The recipe makes 2 servings (each squash boat is a serving) and leftovers are fantastic the next day!
I made this dish and really liked it. To make it vegetarian, what amount of mushrooms would I need to replace the chicken?
Thanks Kathy! An 8oz container of mushrooms should do the trick! You could use white button mushrooms, baby bella, or portobello mushrooms – sauté them with a little garlic and butter and you’re good to go!
Oh this looks to die for! My boyfriend and I LOVE spaghetti squash! I will def have to try this!
OMG. want.
I will be making this but i will be using Large shrimp instead
Thanks Becky! Hope you love it!
I have fallen in mad love with this recipe. I love it so much I have shared it with all of my blog readers and on every site i can get my grubby little hands on. If I could marry this recipe I would. It’s just that amazing. Thanks for sharing it with me. I can now die in food heaven.
This looks delicious I can’t wait to make it!!! One question do you know the approx calories for this meal?
Thanks Brigid! I haven’t calculated the kcal for the dish but essentially the calorie contributors will be the cheese you use, the pesto recipe or brand, as well as the chicken. It’ll vary a little based on the amounts and types you use. Myfitnesspal.com has an awesome free calculator that you can use to get the most accurate calorie count 🙂 I hope you adore the recipe as much as my family and I do!
This was, quite possibly, the best dish i’ve ever cooked. I recently went to more of a low carb diet, and tried this out tonight. I ended up just taking the spaghetti squash out of its shell and baked it in a casserole dish. Was sooo yummy and i literally can’t wait for leftovers tomorrow! I will certainly be using this as a guest meal as well. Thanks for this game changer recipe 🙂
Ahhhhhhh! Yay! Thank you Lexi! Love that you served it casserole style — that would be such a great way to prep it to feed a crowd too! <3
Love your site! Made this last night, without pesto and I added both sauteed tomato and jalapenos- huge hit in my house; thank you! 🙂
I picked up a spaghetti squash this past weekend just so I could try this recipe! Looks so yummy!
You are totally winning me over with all these squash stuffed things! Cannot go wrong with pesto. I have a bunch frozen from when I hacked down my basil plant.
This was delicious!! I’ve been really trying to like spaghetti squash…I really have. It hasn’t been working out…until this! I sautéed some spinach and zucchini (trying to get rid of them!) but otherwise followed the recipe to a T and it was great, thank you 🙂
Oh. My. GAWWWW. Most spaghetti squash recipes don’t get me all hot and bothered, but this one is going to haunt my dreams until I make it. This is SO happening ASAP.
Oh my goodness. Consider me in love with this recipe!
Oh my gosh Jenn! I saw this recipe this morning and couldn’t think of anything else. Over lunch break I rushed to the organic supermarket to get all ingredients. Guess what’s going to be tonight’s dinner 😀 ?
Definitely need to give this a try! I’m not a fan of topping spaghetti squash with marinara sauce, so this looks much better!
I usually don’t eat squash, but this is a wonderful dish!!
UMMM I need to try this ASAP. Like yesterday.
Indeed. Get on it =) MWAH!
This is an awesome twist on Lasagna, I am pesto lover so I need to try this.
I also love all the Cheesyness you have going on!!
Yep… best squash of my life, right here! This is amazing!
holy cheesy goodness!!!!
I couldn’t get this recipe out of my head, and so decided to make it for dinner tonight. Ridiculously good! I ate half tonight and can’t wait to have the second half for lunch tomorrow!!
Cue the happy dance! I’m so glad you loved it! =) Thanks Kira!
Holy Cow! This for sure will make an appearance in my kitchen this fall. I’m in love and I haven’t even tried it yet.
Oh my goodness, that just looks so indulgent. I’ve been eating my spaghetti squash with marinara.. but this takes it to a whole new level! 😉 Thanks!
I don’t even like spaghetti squash much but you’ve converted me.
I was thinking the same damn thing, and I actually have a spaghetti squash hibernating in the basement from my food share. Guess we know how he’ll wind up now.
You love it. You do. You just didn’t know it yet!
I absolutely lover squash, especially this time of year, and this looks incredible!
Thanks Matt!
Oh em gee lady this looks so good!! Wonder if Dave would eat this…I should say the squash is really steak! 😉
one word: blindfold
Ok. This is dinner for Saturday night. Heading Tuesday to my friend’s front yard veggie stand to get us a spaghetti squash. Yum yum yum!!!
I can’t wait for you to make this one! It’s going to rock your plate!
what a creative way to use spaghetti squash! I’ve only ever really seen it made into pasta!!
Thanks Carrie!!! Between this and stuffed sweet potatoes I’m in loooove!
I am so mad I already went to the store for the week, I need this in my mouth asap. Okay that sounded dirty…but you know what I mean! 😉 #deploymentprobs
LOL Ashley! You’ll need to join me as a 2x a weeker! I feel like I live at the grocery store picking up last minute veggies! <3 Oh and I totally feel you on the deployment!