Chipotle-taste-alike Bowl with Spaghetti Squash

April 4, 2014: During football season, Andy and I have a Sunday tradition- order pizza or pick up Chipotle. We have each others' Chipotle orders down pretty pat, but we always complain that one of the two of us has to drive to pick it up. We'll start offering deals like, "I'll pay if you go get it," but neither of us ever want to drive the whole (ready for it?) 7 minutes down the street to pick it up. Man, we are LAZY on Sundays. As a side note: since April, Andy and I have stopped with the pizza tradish. As it turns out, eating a large pizza by oneself can make one deeply regret the impulsive quick-to-order online Domino's moment. Sunday's pizza and Chipotle have mostly been replaced with slow cooker soups and homemade meals. This one is not to be left out, as we are having it for dinner tonight! (1/04/15). 

Chipotle Spaghetti Squash Bowl

Now, I've been going to that Chipotle ever since I bought my house back in 2008. I hadn't ever really had any complaints about my Chicken Fajita Bowl until this year. Suddenly, it was like every single Sunday there was something wrong. One day, they forgot my guacamole and I didn't realize it until I was back home, comfy on our couch. Another time they told me they were OUT of guacamole, and it would take 15 minutes for them to make the next batch. 15 minutes! Yeesh. I make damn good guacamole and it does not take 15 minutes out of my day. This was a problem- we all know that Chipotle is just not complete without guac. 

At least we forget the time when they were out of rice. Excuse me say what? How do you run out of rice? Aren't you a burrito company? Well, needless to say, I was becoming quite dishearted at my Chipotle experiences, when I came across a Pinterest recipe for a Chipotle-like bowl, but with spaghetti squash in lieu of rice. This lower carb, healthier version intrigued me, so we gave it a shot on a lazy Sunday evening. Wowzers! As much as I love Chipotle, and I will probably not really mean this later, but this was almost BETTER than my weekly bowl obsession. Not to mention, I felt pretty good about eating it because instead of 16 Weight Watchers Points Plus like my bowl, this bowl only has 6 PPs! Another side note: since the completion of the Chisolm Trail Parkway, enabling us to get to the other local Chipotle in 5 minutes, we have not returned to the "always out of everything" Chipotle. 

So no, this will never replace my "Chicken fajita bowl, brown rice, fajita veggies, black beans, medium and hot salsas, lettuce, and guac on the side" order, but it is a nice substitute to save money, carbs, or your blood pressure when you hear your burrito will be consisting of hot sauce and beans. 

Chipotle-taste-alike Bowl with Spaghetti Squash

Servings: 4; Weight Watchers Points Plus Value: 6

Chipotle-taste-alike Bowl with Spaghetti Squash

• 1 medium spaghetti squash
• 2 large chicken breasts, cooked and cubed. When you cook the chicken, I suggest preparing it with Chicken Fajita Seasoning or something of the like
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 red onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 jalapeno peppers, minced (leave appr 1/2 of the seeds in, de-seed the rest)
• 1/2 can (appr 5 oz) Rotel 
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1/2 tbsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tbsp oregano
• 1/2 tbsp chili powder
• 1/2 tbsp red pepper flakes
• Salt & pepper as desired
• 1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 c corn, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 c freshly torn cilantro, plus more for garnish
• Juice of 1 lime
• 1 c grated fat-free cheddar cheese

1. Poke holes in your squash with a fork like you would for a baked potato, to prepare to let out steam
2. Cook the squash in the microwave for 16 mins total- rotate at 8 mins, halfway through
3. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high. 
4. Add onion, garlic, jalapeno and bell pepper. Sauté 2 minutes. 
5. Stir in cumin, oregano, chili powder, red pepper, and a good pinch of salt and pepper. 
6. Sauté 1 more minute. 
7. Stir in beans, corn, chicken, half of cilantro and lime juice until well combined
8. Cook everything an additional 5 minutes or until corn and beans are cooked
9. Cut your squash in half and pull out the seeds
10. Scrape the insides from the squash out- it will come out like spaghetti in strings
11. Add the “spaghetti” from squash to the vegetable mixture and stir to combine. 
12. Serve as one big mixed up bowl!

Keep on cookin'!

-Katherine