Delicious Baked Spaghetti - Makes 2 Meals!

My youngest son loves spaghetti. He could eat the stuff every single week if I'd let him. Since I am no spaghetti-loving fool, I have to limit his noodle intake. One of his favorite variations is Bake Spaghetti. This recipe is super simple and when you are making it, you can make it alll at once for a big family get-together or you can seperate it into two 8x8 dishes and freeze one for a later date.


I've found a few variations online, but I've tweeked it to make what has become my little man's favorite version. It's really good! It certainly doesn't take less time than the regular old boil and pour spaghetti, but it's so worth the effort. Plus, if you end up freezing half you end up saving time in the long run. Winner, winner chicken dinner!!

Enough of the jibber jabber, let's get down to the noodles!

Baked Spaghetti

1 pound ground beef, turkey, or sausage
1/2 onion, diced (you can add more, my husband hates onions so I use very little)
2 cloves minced garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 - 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes
1 - 15 oz can tomato sauce (low sodium)
1 cup low sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese
16 oz of uncooked spaghetti noodles
1/2 teaspoon basil
salt and pepper to taste



1. Begin by cooking spaghetti noodles. Break the uncooked noodles into thirds before placing them in the water.

2. In a seperate pan, add oil and saute onions and garlic over medium heat for a few minutes. Add ground beef and cook until browned.  Drain fat from pan (I have a designated turkey baster that I use for getting the hot beef fat out). Add a little salt and pepper to beef.

3.  Add crushed tomatoes, chicken broth, and tomato sauce to beef mixture. Season with salt, pepper, and basil. Taste the sauce. If it needs a bit more flavor, add it. Let sauce simmer for 5 - 7 minutes. Don't boil it. Just a nice simmer.

4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

5. Drain noodles and set aside. Combine mozzarella and cheddar together in a seperate bowl, set aside.

6. You can make this in two 8x8 dishes (you can use those foil pans if you'd like) or one 13x9 dish. It certainly makes a LOT of spaghetti.  The following steps are for a 13x9 pan. Divide the ingredients up as needed for the 8x8 version.

7. Place 1/3 of sauce on bottom of dish.  Top with 1/3 of noodles and 1 1/2 cups of cheese. Repeat layers one more time.

8. Cover dish with foil and bake for 30-45 minutes. Let stand for five minutes after cooking.

(If you're going with the two 8x8 dishes, assemble and then freeze covered with aluminum foil.  When you're ready to bake it, pull it directly from the freezer, and bake for 45 minutes to one hour. Watch for the sauce to boil and then you'll know it's done.)

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There you go! This spaghetti is fantastic. Once you try it, you'll have a difficult time going back to the same old spaghetti.

I hope you give this recipe a try. If you have any alterations that make this dish even better, I'd love to hear about them. Leave your tips in the comments.

As always, thanks for reading.

Take care,
NB