Million Dollar Spaghetti Casserole is a budget-friendly casserole that’s easy to make.
Layers of spaghetti and cheese are smothered in a savory beefy sauce and baked until brown and bubbly.
Casseroles are an easy way to feed a hungry family!
- Million Dollar Spaghetti is a combination of baked spaghetti and lasagna.
- It’s is a large and hearty casserole that reheats and freezes well for future meals.
- While the ingredients are simple this meal is delicious, everyone raves about it.
Ingredients in Million Dollar Spaghetti
Meat: I like using Italian sausage as it has lots of flavor, but in a pinch, you can substitute ground beef or ground turkey. If substituting the sausage, I would recommend adding extra seasoning to the sauce.
Sauce: This recipe uses pasta sauce as the base to keep it quick and easy. You can use homemade marinara sauce or your favorite jar of sauce. Feel free to stir in fresh herbs if you’d like!
Cheese: The cheese layer is made with either cottage cheese or ricotta cheese. I prefer cottage cheese because I think it adds so much creaminess to the recipe.
Pasta: We most often make this with spaghetti but other types of pasta can be used. Try ziti or rigatoni noodles.
Serving Suggestions
Million dollar spaghetti is a hearty casserole that is a complete meal on its own. You can pair it with garlic bread and a fresh salad if you’d like.
Leftovers and Prep Ahead
The leftovers of this casserole reheat well! The pasta softens up a bit when reheating, but the flavor is just as good as when it was fresh out of the oven.
Prep Ahead: Million Dollar Spaghetti Casserole can be made up to 24 hours ahead of time. Remove it from the fridge at least 30 minutes before baking and add an additional 15 minutes to the baking time.
Freezing: To freeze the casserole, wrap it in plastic wrap first, then aluminum foil. Let it thaw overnight in the fridge before baking.
More Favorite Spaghetti Recipes
Did your family love this Million Dollar Spaghetti Casserole? Leave us a rating and a comment below!
Million Dollar Spaghetti Casserole
Ingredients
- 16 ounces spaghetti
- 1 large yellow onion chopped
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 1 ½ pounds Italian sausage casing removed
- 3 teaspoons Italian seasoning divided
- 48 ounces marinara sauce or spaghetti sauce, 2 jars, divided
- 8 ounces cottage cheese or ricotta cheese
- 8 ounces cream cheese room temperature
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese divided
- ½ cup butter cut into slices, divided, optional
- chopped fresh parsley and parmesan cheese for garnish, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta al dente according to package directions. Drain well and return the pasta to the original pot. Add 24 oz of prepared spaghetti sauce and toss to combine. Set aside.
- In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook until they begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add sausage and 2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning to skillet, and cook until no pink remains. Drain excess fat. Add the remaining 24 oz of spaghetti sauce to skillet. Set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine cottage cheese or ricotta cheese, cream cheese, sour cream, 1 cup mozzarella, and 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning. Set aside.
- Place half the slices of butter (if using) in a 9×13 baking dish. Spread half of the spaghetti in the dish, then top with the cheese mixture. Spread the remaining spaghetti over the cheese mixture. Top with the remaining butter slices (if using). Pour tomato meat sauce evenly over top.
- Top with remaining mozzarella and bake uncovered in the preheated oven until the casserole is heated through, about 35-45 minutes.
- Rest 15 minutes before serving.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Casserole, Dinner, Pasta
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
I’m looking forward to making this recipe. Do you think gluten free pasta will work as well? Love your website
Hi Andrea, gluten free pasta should work well in this recipe. I would love to hear how it turns out for you!
Hey Holly we are going to feed about 200 people later this month. Thinking of using your recipe, it looks really good. Question: You state that there are 12 servings. Is that typically enough for an adult portion? Would you figure on a few less servings to ensure enough food. It will be served with salad. Any other tips for feeding such a large crowd?
Thanks so much!
Bill
Hi Bill, the servings are about 1 ½ cups. I have never made this recipe in that volume though! I would love to hear how it turns out.
Really tasty. Will definitely make this again.
Great recipe as is for a special meal. I love that you still have the nutritional breakdown so that we can all adjust to accommodate special dietary restrictions (salt, carbs, cholesterol). Many recipes no longer provide this information and I find it frustrating and time consuming. I bought your recipe book, totally worth it!
It’s great you find the nutritional info helpful! I’m so glad you love my book Bex (if you’re so inclined a review on Amazon would mean so much)!
If you use Italian pork sausage instead of Italian sausage with casing removed, do you still add 2 tsp. Italian seasoning?
Sure you can and yes, I would recommend keeping the seasonings the same.
I had 18 people for Christmas lunch, so I did 2x the recipe! It was delicious and I received rave reviews for the casseroles I had put together the day before and baked while the revelers were en route for lunch! Served with salad and Tiramisu for an easy Italian Christmas lunch.
Rush!! can this be frozen before baking? Making it. cleaning it up. and freezing it would really help my holiday schedule. Thank you in advance!
Yes, this freezes well. To freeze the casserole, wrap it in plastic wrap first, then aluminum foil. Let it thaw overnight in the fridge before baking—you will need to add extra baking time if it is cold from the fridge.
Hi Holly! I split this into two 9 x 6 pans because my children are picky, it’s just my husband and I who eat it. How long would you say it’s good for if I freeze it right after prepping? Thank you!!
Hi Elizabeth, it should last up to 3 months in the freezer.
hi! have you used reduced fat sour cream and/or cream cheese? any issues with using either? thanks!
Those should both work just fine in this recipe.
This is an awesome recipe and EVERY TIME I’ve served it, people have asked for the recipe. Thank you!
Could you make this in a disposable foil pan? Would it change the cook time? I want to make it for a friend having surgery and don’t want them to worry about returning/cleaning a dish. I’ve made this many times before and it’s always a hit!
It should work well in a foil pan but make sure they place the foil pan on a baking sheet for proper heat dispersement during baking.
Wonderful, Wonderful Recipe.
This is the best baked spaghetti recipe I have tried. It was well loved by my family.