Vegan Spaghetti Squash Piccata

I recently had an amazing plant based dinner at Bella Vista in the Four Seasons Biltmore, I was blown away at the flavors and creativity of some traditional classic dishes and how they transformed them into plant based recipes. The server informed me that they had recently had a vegan consultant come help them redesign the menu to offer more plant based options. We ordered a piccata dish, walnut lasagna and a vegan chocolate cake. I can honestly say that I did not miss the meat one bit and would absolutely order again. That said, their piccata was a little heavy on the "buttery" side for my taste, therefore I have worked to create a my own version, a little bit lighter on the "butter". The result, divine!!! Feel free to add nutritional yeast, vegan Parmesan, regular Parmesan (if you're not plant based), or pine nuts, all would be delicious. Hope you give this a try and if not, definitely make your way over to Bella Vista to check out their new plant based offerings!

Vegan Spaghetti Squash Piccata (Serves 4)

Ingredients:

Squash:

· 1 Spaghetti Squash, halved

Marinated Mushrooms:

· 4 portobello mushrooms, sliced ½ “thick

· ¼ cup white wine vinegar

· 2 Tbsp olive oil, divided

· Himalayan salt and pepper to taste

Piccata Sauce:

· 2 Tbsp vegan butter or olive oil (I love Miyoko’s vegan butter)

· 1 large shallot, diced

· 2 cloves garlic, minced

· ¾ cup vegetable broth or stock

· ¾ cup chardonnay (any dry white wine or additional broth work)

· 2 Tbsp lemon juice

· Himalayan salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste

· 2-4 Tbsp caper, drained

· ¼ parsley, chopped

Directions:

1) Heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

2) Place halved squash in a baking dish face down. Add 1” of water. Place in oven and bake for approximately 45 minutes or until the outer shell pushes in a bit to the touch.

3) In the meantime, add mushroom, white wine vinegar and 1 Tbsp olive to a dish or ziplock bag. Let sit to marinate for at least 20 minutes while squash is cooking.

4) After 20 minutes, heat saute pan to medium along with 1 Tbsp of olive oil. Add marinated mushrooms and any remaining marinade. Cook 3-4 minutes on each side, or until tender. Season with Himalayan salt and pepper to taste. Once done, remove from heat, cover and set aside while making piccata sauce.

5) Next, heat a new saute pan to medium and add vegan butter. Lower heat to low, add shallot and cook until softened and golden in color, about 30 seconds to a minute. Add little splashes of water if needed to keep shallot from sticking to pan.

6) Add the garlic and cook just until fragrant, being careful not to burn, about a minute.

7) Add wine to deglaze the pan and increase the heat to medium high, cooking until wine is reduced by half, scraping up bits from the bottom of the pan, about 4-5 minutes.

8) Add vegetable broth and lemon juice, cook until reduced by half again, another 4-5 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and whisk in the other tablespoon of vegan butter, capers and parsley, until melted and sauce has a velvety texture. Add Himalayan salt and pepper to taste.

9) Scrape seeds out of the spaghetti squash halves and discard. Then scrape spaghetti squash strands out of the shell and add to the picatta, stirring to combine.

10) Divide spaghetti squash picatta mixture among 4 dishes. Top with marinated mushrooms and additional parsley for garnish.

11) Serve and Enjoy!