"Pulled" Squash and Apple Slaw

Today's recipe was lovingly created for a dear friend and recent convert to the vegetarian lifestyle. In casual conversation, she mentioned that the thing she misses most about eating meat is barbecue sauce. Sure, she could easily slather it on vegetables or pour it over pasta but I wanted to give her something she could really sink her teeth into, something composed with layers of flavor. The first thing that came to mind was a barbecue sandwich (a nostalgic nod to a particular late night in Seaside when we rode our bikes to get pulled pork and cheese grits). I used roasted spaghetti squash as the vehicle for the sauce and an apple coleslaw to dress the sandwich. Toasted slider buns housed the tangy mixture and added an extra level of crunch. The apple slaw was vinegar based and packed full of flavor from the addition of green onions, red pepper flakes, and dijon mustard. Sweet and crunchy, and wonderfully sloppy, this sandwich did not disappoint. Now, can someone get me some cheese grits?.....

"Pulled" Squash:

1 spaghetti squash

1/2 C water

bbq sauce

Slice squash in half, lengthwise, and place in a shallow baking pan filled with 1/2 C water. Cover with foil and place in 425 degree oven for 35 minutes or until soft. Using a fork, scrape the inside of the squash into a bowl and coat with bbq sauce.

*Apple Slaw:

1 head of green cabbage

1 TBSP salt

3 tart apples

3 scallions

1/2 C cider vinegar

4 TBSP olive oil

1/2 C raw sugar

1 TBSP dijon mustard

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

Remove core from cabbage. Shred cabbage into a colander and sprinkle with salt, let sit for 1 hour. Rinse and dry cabbage. Slice apples and scallions and toss together in a bowl with cabbage. In a sauce pan, combine vinegar, oil, mustard, pepper flakes, and sugar and whisk until incorporated. Pour warm liquid over cabbage mixture. Toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

*original slaw recipe found here, tweaked to use olive oil and less of it, as well as more red pepper flake, more scallion, and more apple.