Spaghetti Squash with Lemon, Cream and Herbs

Spaghetti squash is a mildly flavored variety with flesh that, as the name suggests, can be raked apart into long, spaghetti-like strands after cooking. In a recipe from “Root to Leaf,” Atlanta chef Steven Satterfield tosses roasted spaghetti squash with a light, creamy herb sauce. Not only did we riff on his combination of ingredients, we learned that halving the squash crosswise instead of lengthwise will yield the longest, most spaghetti-like strands because the fibers grow in a spiral around the seedy core of the squash. We think pumpkin seeds and sage leaves toasted in butter are perfect flavor and textural accents for this autumnal dish. If you wish to add a little heat to balance the richness of the dish, sprinkle red pepper flakes on as a garnish along with the parsley and sage-pumpkin seed mixture.