Quilt Retreat Salad

Recipe for Quilt Retreat Salad: Mix 20 - 25 women and sewing machines gathered from across 3 states, a few hundred yards of colorful fabric cut into fat quarters or smaller, and tubs of patterns, notions and other door prizes. Sprinkle in walks in the countryside, bountiful covered dish meals and shared sewing tips. Bubble with laughter and creative ideas in a southeast Kansas hunting lodge for 3 days.

The recent Quilt Retreat weekend I attended was full of all that and great fun. The meals proved that quilters are also good cooks. I took a Spaghetti Squash Salad that many were interested in. Remember the joke about locking your car doors in the summer in a small community? Zucchini and other squash will appear from your friends' bountiful gardens. I've been enjoying some of that bounty by trying new recipes.

Spaghetti Squash Salad                    

1 spaghetti squash (about 2 ½ pounds)

1 small bunch green onions, finely chopped

1 cup sugar

1 cup diced celery

½ cup chopped sweet red pepper

½ cup chopped green pepper

¼ cup chopped black olives

½ cup vegetable oil

¼ cup vinegar

½ teaspoon salt

Directions:

Cut squash in half lengthwise; scoop out seeds. Place squash, cut side down, in a 13-inch x 9-inch baking pan. Fill pan with hot water to a depth of ½ inch. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until tender. When cool enough to handle, scoop out the squash, separating strands with a fork. Combine remaining ingredients in a bowl; add the squash and stir well. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Serve with a slotted spoon as a salad or as a relish with burgers and hot dogs. Store in the refrigerator.

This was a large spaghetti squash

lots of seeds inside to scoop out

after baking 30 minutes, the pulp comes out
in spaghetti-like strands when scraped with a fork 

this is all that was left after
removing the 'spaghetti'