BAKED SPAGHETTI – The Southern Lady Cooks

Baked Spaghetti is a family favorite! Delicious meat sauce, pasta and cheesy goodness is a wonderful combination!

If you love this delicious dish you should try out Stuffed Green Peppers. They are one of our most popular recipes and the meat mixture they are stuffed with is delicious.

❤️WHY WE LOVE THIS DELICIOUS DISH!

This dish combination of pasta, meat sauce and cheese then baked together allows the flavors to really meld together and create a wonderful dish. This spaghetti is easy to make and it reheats really well. You can also be versatile with the meat sauce and add what you love.

This dish is very convenient because it can be made in advance. You can assemble the dish and bake it when ready. It’s perfect for church gatherings, potlucks or even the holidays.

🍴KEY INGREDIENTS

SWAPS

If you are looking for a higher protein lower fat meal, you can switch it out with ground turkey or ground chicken. You can also add any vegetables you like and use different pasta, but this is the way we enjoy this recipe.

🍽️HOW TO MAKE

This dish isn’t complicated to make; you can make the pasta while you make the meat sauce.

PREPARATIONS

I like to cut up all my veggies and organize my spices before I get started.

COOKING STEPS

Step 1
Brown ground beef, green pepper, and onion in a large skillet on top of the stove, drain. Add the oregano, black pepper, salt, minced garlic and Italian Spaghetti sauce to hamburger and stir to mix.

Step 2
Cook the spaghetti according to package directions, drain. Spray a 9 x 13 baking dish with cooking spray. Add the hot spaghetti and toss with the 2 tablespoons of butter and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese.

Step 3
Spread spaghetti in bottom of dish and cover with entire container of cottage cheese or ricotta cheese. Spread the hamburger mixture over the cottage cheese. Top with the other 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese and the 2 cups of mozzarella cheese.

Step 4
Bake in preheated 400 degree oven covered for 30 minutes. Remove covering and cook for 15 more minutes.

Step 5
Let it rest a bit and then cut and enjoy!

⭐TIP

We cover the baked spaghetti for the first part of cooking so the cheese doesn’t get overly brown. Then remove for the last part so it will melt well and set up a little.

RECIPE VARIATIONS

Cajun Baked Spaghetti
Mexican Baked Spaghetti
BBQ Baked Spaghetti

SERVE THIS WITH

These Garlic Herb Crescent rolls are only a few ingredients and super easy to make! Add this easy Cucumber Tomato Salad for a great meal.

❓FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

STORING AND REHEATING

Cover with foil or in an air-tight container and store in the refrigerator. You can freeze this dish. Let cooked baked spaghetti cool to room temperature, then divide into freezer containers and freeze. When thawing, let thaw in fridge over night.

💕MORE POPULAR RECIPES TO ENJOY

SERVING SIZE

This recipe makes about 10 servings depending on the size you cut each portion. We love to make this for Sunday night dinner and then enjoy it for a few days.

Baked Spaghetti

The Southern Lady Cooks

This baked spaghetti is the perfect comfort food.

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 5 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

• 1.5- 2 pounds ground beef
• 1 green pepper chopped
• 1 onion chopped
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano or Italian seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 24 ounce container Italian Spaghetti Sauce or pasta sauce of your choice
• 1 8 ounces of spaghetti
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese divided
• 1 24 ounce container cottage cheese or ricotta cheese
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

• Brown ground beef, green pepper, and onion in a large skillet on top of the stove, drain. Add the oregano, black pepper, salt, minced garlic and Italian Spaghetti sauce to hamburger and stir to mix.

• Cook the spaghetti according to package directions, drain. Spray a 9 x 13 baking dish with cooking spray. Add the hot spaghetti and toss with the 2 tablespoons of butter and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. Spread spaghetti in bottom of dish and cover with entire container of cottage cheese or ricotta cheese.

• Spread the hamburger mixture over the cottage cheese. Top with the other 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese and the 2 cups of mozzarella cheese.

• Bake in preheated 400 degree oven covered for 30 minutes. Remove covering and cook for 15 more minutes.

This makes about 10 to 12 servings and keeps great in the refrigerator for several days. It is great reheated in the stove or microwave. You could also freeze part of it or cut the recipe in half.

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