Pasta and Pizza

Baked Spaghetti

by Holly
5 from 9 votes
October 21, 2018 · Updated December 2, 2018 · 38 Comments

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Baked Spaghetti is a favorite casserole around here!  A quick zesty meat sauce is combined with tomatoes and spaghetti and topped with cheese.  This spaghetti casserole is baked in the oven until hot and bubbly.

Just like stuffed shells, this easy recipe is perfect served with  crusty bread, homemade Garlic Butter and a Caesar Salad.

Baked Spaghetti cooked in a large white baking dish and cut into pieces ready to serve

Easy Baked Spaghetti

This easy baked spaghetti casserole is a family favorite that is loaded with flavor!  We love Italian flavors from Easy Meatballs to a simple bruschetta and this cheesy casserole is no exception!

While Million Dollar Spaghetti Casserole contains a lot of cheese in the spaghetti mixture (like cream cheese, cottage cheese or ricotta), this recipe is simple has pasta and sauce with a little bit of cheese on top.

Baked Spaghetti mixed together and ready to bake

How to Make Baked Spaghetti

Baked Spaghetti Casserole is easy to make, simply prepare the meat sauce, toss with spaghetti and bake until bubbly. The prep can be done then night before and then baked before serving making this baked spaghetti the perfect potluck dish!

  1. Brown beef and onions. Add veggies and tomato sauce and simmer.
  2. Stir in spaghetti and place in a dish.
  3. Top with cheese and bake!

The cheese on top gets golden and crusty making for amazing flavor! Make sure your spaghetti is cooked al dente as the noodles do cook a bit more in the oven and you don’t want them to get mushy.

One great thing about this recipe is that you can add whatever you like to the sauce. If you don’t like green pepper, skip it and add diced mushrooms or zucchini.  You can easily adjust this to your liking and add more or less sauce if you’d prefer.

A slice of Baked Spaghetti served on a small white plate

How Long to Bake Spaghetti

Since the pasta and the sauce are warm when I put this dish together, it usually takes about 25 minutes or so to bake in the oven.  If you prep it ahead of time and refrigerate, it’ll take a bit longer.  Remove it from the fridge about 30 minutes before baking and bake about 35 minutes or until hot in the centre.

Do You Cover Baked Spaghetti

I never cover baked spaghetti because the  crusty cheese on top is my favorite part!  Covering this dish also makes it steam which can overcook the spaghetti.

Baked Spaghetti in a white baking dish with a couple slices taken out

Serve this with a side salad and garlic toast for an easy meal.  This easy casserole is great leftover and freezes perfectly!

More Pasta Dishes You’ll Love

5 from 9 votes
Review Recipe

Baked Spaghetti

Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Servings 8 servings
Author Holly Nilsson
Course Casserole, Dinner, Pasta
Cuisine American, Italian
This easy baked spaghetti casserole is a family favorite that is easy to prepare!
Print Pin

Ingredients

  • 16 oz spaghetti cooked
  • 1/4 cup fresh parsley
  • 1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese
  • 1/3 cup fresh parmesan cheese
Sauce
  • 1 lb ground beef or italian sausage
  • 1 small onion diced
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
  • 1 green pepper diced
  • 32 oz pasta sauce
  • 14.5 oz diced tomatoes

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Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  2. Brown meat, onion, garlic, seasoning and green pepper over medium heat making sure to break up the meat very well. (Drain any fat if needed).

  3. Add pasta sauce, Italian seasoning and tomatoes to meat. Simmer 5-10 minutes uncovered. Stir in spaghetti and parsley.

  4. Spread into a  9x13 pan, top with cheeses and bake 25-30 minutes or until hot and cheese is browned and bubbly. Cut into squares to serve.

Nutrition Information
Calories: 318, Fat: 4g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Cholesterol: 41mg, Sodium: 1007mg, Potassium: 732mg, Carbohydrates: 41g, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 7g, Protein: 27g, Vitamin A: 850%, Vitamin C: 17.7%, Calcium: 294%, Iron: 3.4%

(Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.)

Keyword baked spaghetti, spaghetti casserole
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REPIN this Easy Casserole Recipe

Baked Spaghetti in a large baking dish, cut and ready to serve

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Baked Spaghetti is one of my family’s favorites and is so easy to make! A quick zesty meat sauce is combined with tomatoes and spaghetti and topped with cheese. This spaghetti casserole is baked in the oven until hot and bubbly. #spendwithpennies #bakedspaghetti #casserole #easyrecipe #easycasserole #groundbeef #pasta #withtomatosauce #familyfriendly #easydinner

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About the author

Holly

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Holly is a wine and cheese lover, recipe creator, shopping enthusiast and self appointed foodie. Her greatest passion is creating in the kitchen and making deliciously comforting recipes for the everyday home cook!

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Comments

  1. I took it to a potluck everyone loved it. All I added was a bit of maple syrup to the tomatoes it bring out the flavor delish

    Reply

  2. We loved this spaghetti casserole! It uses simple ingredients, easy to assemble, makes a ton AND most importantly, it is yummy! I used garlic with fire-roasted tomato sauce and a can of diced tomatoes with garlic. I used a 24 oz jar of sauce, but washed the jar out with a bit of water and added that as well. I would like it even more with the 32 oz sauce too. The only other changes I made…added a dash or two of cayenne pepper, since I like it spicy. (It wasn’t too spicy for others, but had a bit of a “kick”), and since I didn’t have mozzarella on hand, used some other mixed shredded cheeses, plus the parmesan cheese. Served it with some garlic bread. We had lots of leftovers and tomorrow, we will have it with a Caesar salad.

    Thank you for this recipe!

    Reply

  3. My husband and I really enjoyed this recipe! Used Victoria marinara…all natural/no sugar added. Did add more sauce than stated since pasta will absorb some liquid if it’s cooked ala dente. We really loved it as left overs. Can cut a slice, warm up and dinner’s done! Thanks for the recipe!

    Reply

  10. We had company tonight and I need an easy and delicious recipe! This one was a hit with everyone!! Yay!!

    Reply

  14. Holly, I would love to give you a hug. Love all your recipes (so far made baked spaghetti and squash casserole). Can’t wait to try them all. If a 65 to man learning how to cook can make wonderful food like this, with your help, my wife will never touch a spatula again. You make cooking fun! Thank you!

    Reply

  17. I have been on many website’s looking for new recipes, this one, by far has the most consistent, flavourful, easy, never fail recipes to date. Thank you do much for sharing with us foodies your delicious findings. Keep up the good work!!!

    Reply