Swap out fatty crusty quiche for a lighter, flavor-packed Spaghetti Squash Quiche with Kale and Mushrooms!
Enjoy this quiche alone or alongside a healthy coleslaw or healthy potato salad!
Spaghetti squash is a vegetable with a noodle-like flesh and a slightly sweet taste. It can easily replace pasta in a casserole like healthy spaghetti squash casserole, make a low carb “noodle” boat like these stuffed spaghetti squash boats, and now form a crust in this meaty and delicious gluten-free spaghetti squash quiche. Why not?!
You don’t have to squeeze the liquid out or any extra steps. Once pressed in a pie plate, spaghetti squash easily replaces traditional flour crust without extra carbs. Cheesy, meaty and so full of flavour. It melts in your mouth. Warm or cold, I love it both ways. I’m a huge fan of mushrooms and combined with leafy healthy green like kale, you can’t go wrong. This combination will blow your mind!
Though if you prefer to ditch crusts altogether you might like these recipes for crustless broccoli, spinach, and zucchini quiche!
Besides swapping traditional crust for a spaghetti squash one, I replaced some cheese with cottage cheese and swapped a few eggs with egg whites. More protein and less fat. Healthy fat is good for you but again, in moderation. You won’t miss any cheese in this healthy spaghetti squash quiche.
How to Make Spaghetti Squash Quiche
Start off by cutting and baking some squash. If you need a refresher, I have posted full series about how to cut open spaghetti squash, baking it whole and even cooking spaghetti squash in air fryer.
For this recipe, you need a bit undercooked squash and you will have to use some muscles to separate it into strands. The longer the squash cooks, more liquid it releases. And we don’t want to end up with a hot mess as the quiche bakes with a filling inside.
Then saute your mushrooms. Nice golden brown colour, just enough to release the excess liquid. Then kale. I added spices to kale on purpose, do not skip this important step to an aromatic spaghetti squash quiche. Trust me, I tested this recipe 3 times.
Whisk eggs, cottage cheese, cheese and spices together. Do not worry, cottage cheese will melt and incorporate with other ingredients beautifully. Nothing will curdle.
Then form a crust with your hands. Just press spaghetti squash to the sides and bottom of a pie dish. I used a deep pie dish but regular one will work just fine. I added a few spices to the crust as well. Nothing complicated – salt, black pepper and thyme. Can’t stand bland food.
Then mix kale and mushrooms with the liquids. Just until combined. Pour into the crust and press with spatula to dunk all vegetables in the liquid. This way the veggies won’t dry out as the quiche rises. You could even open the oven after 20 minutes of baking and press again.
I baked my spaghetti squash quiche for 50 minutes. Check with a knife and if it comes out clean, your quiche is ready.
Like with any casserole or pie, let it cool to ensure proper slicing, about 30 minutes. You might have to lift the edges of the crust with a knife a bit. Alternatively, you could spray the pie dish edges with a cooking spray before adding the ingredients to it.
Serve this to balance healthy french toast casserole at brunch!
More Healthy Egg Recipes to Try
- Healthy frittata
- Instant Pot egg bites
- Healthy breakfast casserole
- Quinoa egg muffins
- Healthy breakfast egg sandwich
You can also browse through this list of healthy egg recipes or spaghetti squash recipes!
Spaghetti Squash Quiche with Kale and Mushrooms
Ingredients
Crust:
- 1 medium spaghetti squash about 2.5 lbs
- 1/2 tsp thyme
- 1/2 tsp onion or garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
Filling:
- 3 cups mushrooms sliced
- 1 medium onion finely chopped
- 5 garlic cloves crushed
- 2 cups kale chopped & packed (I used 1 bunch of Lacinato kale)
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup egg whites
- 1 cup 4 oz any cheese, shredded (I used 3 cheese blend)
- 1 cup cottage cheese
- 2 tsp onion or garlic powder
- 1 + 1/2 tsp dried thyme divided
- 1/2 tsp salt divided
- 3/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper divided
- Cooking spray I use Misto
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Cut squash in half and place face side down on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or foil. Bake for 30 minutes, remove from the oven and set aside to cool until safe to handle.
- In the meanwhile, preheat large skillet on high heat and spray with cooking spray. Add mushrooms and saute for 5 minutes or until golden brown, stirring occasionally. Transfer to a medium bowl. Return skillet to medium-high heat and spray with cooking spray. Add onion and garlic and cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add kale, 1/2 tsp thyme, 1/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper and saute until kale is wilted. Transfer to a bowl with mushrooms and set aside.
- To make the crust, seed spaghetti squash and separate flesh into strands using a fork. Add to a medium bowl along with thyme, onion/garlic powder and salt, and mix to combine. Transfer to a deep pie dish and press evenly on the bottom and sides using your hands. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine eggs with egg whites and whisk for 30 seconds. Add cheese, cottage cheese, previously cooked mushrooms and kale, 2 tsp onion/garlic powder, 1 tsp thyme, 1/4 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp black pepper and mix to combine. Pour into prepared crust and flatten with spatula to make sure all vegetables are dunk in the liquid. Bake in 400 degrees F oven for 50 mins or until the knife inserted comes out clean. Let quiche cool down for at least 30 minutes. Cut into 8 slices and serve hot or cold.
So yummy !!
Loved the recipe ! First time making it !
Yay! Glad you loved it Lorraine.
Love this recipe! I used 4 whole eggs, skipped the egg whites, and forgot the cheese. It was delicious!
That’s great to hear Alex!
Loved this. Had a huge spaghetti squash and about 3 plus cups left over and it worked out very well in this recipe. I left out the extra shredded cheese, just used cottage cheese 2& which I love in recipes, and it was still great to us. Used spinach instead of kale this time as had that on hand. I liked the way the spaghetti squash with just seasoning on it made the crust part. 50 minutes it was perfect. Will make again. A favorite Thank you
Thanks for sharing Frances! So glad you liked the recipe.
Can I sub something for Cottage cheese which I hate????
I would use extra 1/2 cup eggs equivalent = 3 large eggs and 1/2 cup milk.
Worth a second try. I was over generous with the kale and mushrooms so ended up having to add more egg. Deep dish is an understatement lol. I had to bake it in a casserole dish.
I’m going to try it with spinach next time. I’m so lazy, I hate fussing with kale spines. Though the kale is hardy and gives the dish a great texture.
I might blind-bake the crust on low for a bit or leave the cooked spaghetti squash to drain in a sieve to make it drier. My quiche was too wet. I had to bake it for 2+ hours to get rid of the water in the middle. I’m sure being so “deep-dish” added to the cook time. I was relieved my quiche wasn’t eggy or rubbery in spite of the long bake time. I did decrease the oven temperature to 350F for the last 45 minutes because I was worried about the burning the crust with the longer bake time.
I love the spaghetti squash crust. Cool idea and it works.
This was a great recipe I really enjoyed this
Could I use something else instead of Spaghetti Squash, i wish i liked it but probably the only vegetable i don’t
Maybe grated raw sweet potato?! I think it will be awesome!
This was great! The squash crust is soft but delicious. I didn’t add thyme at all. I used only one garlic clove minced and only 1/2 tsp garlic powder. Next time I will add only half as much salt – it’s very salty- and I am a salt lover. My husband and I ate the whole quiche for dinner.
Awesome.:) I am not a salt lover but I wonder if my salt is less salty…
I find it hard to cut an uncooked spaghetti squash in half. Any suggestions? I usually cook it whole, let it cool, then cut it and scrape out the seeds.
Hi Lee. Yes, it is absolutely nearly impossible. This is the only way I cut spaghetti squash: with a serrated bread knife while pounding on it with a meat tenderizer or basically a hammer. Slowly, it will cut through and voila. Also, bright yellow squash’s skin is harder than light yellow, if you have a choice at the store.
I’ve also microwaved the spaghetti squash a bit before trying to cut it. Works well and safer. Look forward to trying the recipe!
Thanks for sharing Rose!
I am currently making this as I am typing this, it was pretty easy, considering I am making spaghetti squash boats this week of planning as well. I had always had terrible luck with cutting squash, then I tried something new. I cut the skin on the squash, just slightly puncturing into the meat on where I want to cut. I stick that whole squash in the microwave 5-6 minutes. I let it cool for about 5 minutes and then cut into it. It is super easy and I was very happy with the result. I then roasted it according to recipe or taste. I had the worst luck with squash since my skin breaks out and peels really bad for days everytime I handle squash. Since then, I don’t have that nearly as much, or sometimes not at all. I hope this helps.
Poke your squash several times with a sharp knife and microwave it for 5 to 8 minutes depending on size (medium/large). When you take it out it will slice like butter. Scoop it out, add your seasonings and fats, then roast flesh side down. Let it rest a moment before cutting because it does get hot.