Spaghetti Squash Casserole

I was wanting something different for dinner, so I got a spaghetti squash the other day. Of course, I had no idea what to do with it, so once I got home I surfed around trying to find a recipe that sounded good. I found one that I wanted to try, but made a few modifications to make it a bit more satisfying for us meat-eaters. I did end up overcooking the squash, so it didn't shred into strings - it was more like your typical mushy squash - but it tasted great and worked well as a casserole instead.

Ingredients:
1 medium-sized spaghetti squash, halved lengthwise and seeded
1/2 pound sausage (we like Jimmy Dean, in the chub)
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
1/4 cup grated romano cheese, plus an additional 1/4 cup (or more) for topping
2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage
2 teaspoons butter, melted
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place squash in a baking dish, cut side down, and bake 30-50 minutes, until a knife can be inserted easily into the thick part of the squash. When the squash is done, remove it from the oven and allow to cool enough to handle. While the squash is cooling, cook the sausage until done. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon, leaving the drippings in the pan. Cook the onion in the drippings until translucent and add to the sausage. In a clean, dry pan, toast the pine nuts until brown on all sides, stirring frequently to prevent burning. Set aside. When the squash is cool enough to handle, scrape out the flesh using a fork and put in a casserole dish. Discard the skin. Add the sausage, onion, pine nuts, 1/4 cup romano cheese, sage, butter, salt, and pepper and mix together. Smooth out mixture in dish and top with additional romano cheese. Put dish back in oven set to broil and watch closely. Remove when cheese is melted and browned and squash mixture is bubbling.

We were pleasantly surprised at how this turned out! My attempts at improvisation while cooking are usually inedible, so this was a good surprise. I would definitely make this again when I'm in the mood for a homey, fall dish.

(11/10) Note: At the grocery store yesterday, I looked over the squash they had on display. it turns out that the one I used for this recipe was actually a butternut squash - that explains why it didn't "string" after it was cooked! So this should really be titled "Butternut Squash Casserole". I have no idea how this would taste with spaghetti squash, but I'm willing to give it a try!