Embrace laziness with tacos. The ultimate crowd pleaser and stress-free dinner with room for picky eaters.

These are a great vegetarian option for summer potlucks, weeknight dinners, etc. because they’re light and easy to prep in advance. Realistically you could make everything in advance then just heat up the squash and shells when you’re ready to eat (which means leftovers are easy too).

The other day I had some friends over and one of them asked me what my top 3 goals for the summer were. I said to get my driver’s license (because 18 year olds are now more capable than me), to fix my shoulder injury which has been annoying me for a long time, and to go camping. The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to do the 3rd, which really requires the 1st and 2nd to be enjoyed to the max. Not the mention the good stack of campfire food which will be photographed despite mosquitoes.

Over the past weekend my mom, boyfriend and I picked out all the veggies to grow in the garden. To list a few we got watermelon, swiss chard, Romanian peppers, corn and garlic. I’m pretty pumped (there’s a ton more but if you’re not into gardening you’re probably bored with my list of plants). I also tried a fun experiments with regrowing scallions from scraps—it’s working so effectively I’m going to have to post it up and share.

Ingredients

• 1 small spaghetti squash, halved and gutted
• Vegetable oil for roasting
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 12 crispy taco shells (I got mine from a basic grocery store kit)
• 1 batch of creamy peanut slaw
• 1/3 cup smoked barbecue sauce
• 1/2 tsp. spicy paprika
• 1 tsp. fresh lime juice
• A big bowl full of leafy greens for garnish
• 1 jalapeño, finely chopped (simmered in maple syrup if you’re feeling fancy)

Method

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Rub vegetable oil on each half of the squash, then place cut side down on a baking sheet. Place in the oven and roast for roughly 50 minutes to 1 hour until the insides easily come apart with a fork. Allow to cool until you can touch with your hands, then scrape out the squash threads into a saucepan.

Add the barbecue sauce, paprika and lime juice to the saucepan and give a good stir. Bring the squash to a low simmer. Meanwhile, bake your shells and prep your remaining fillings. Remove from heat and layer tacos to your heart’s desire!