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This easy baked spaghetti recipe is sure to become a family favorite! It’s kid-friendly, quick, has a meaty sauce, and uses basic ingredients the whole family will love.
This easy baked spaghetti recipe is a Drake family favorite. I’m pretty sure most moms have their own version of this great recipe that they make on a regular basis. It’s got a lot of things going for it…it’s easy, pretty quick, hearty, has simple ingredients, and usually there are leftovers. When my kids were home, I knew I could make this and everyone would eat it. No one complained! All I needed was this baked spaghetti casserole with some garlic bread, and we were ready to eat.
Why This Recipe Works
I’ve been making this dish for so long that I honestly don’t remember how I came up with it. It’s certainly not anything complicated, but sometimes those types of recipes turn out to be the best. Kids love this because there are no weird ingredients, and it’s not spicey. I love using fresh basil when I have it in my garden, and it’s wonderful in this easy baked spaghetti recipe. I chop up about 6 – 8 leaves and throw it in. It adds freshness and a little color.
Ingredient Notes + Tips
- Ground turkey or Italian sausage can be substituted for the ground beef.
- Additions: ricotta cheese, Italian seasoning, black olives, chopped onions, red pepper flakes, green peppers, sliced mushrooms, or oregano.
- Penne, shells, elbows, spaghetti noodles, or whole wheat pasta can be substituted for the rotini.
- Store this delicious casserole in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave.
- For a classic comfort food dinner, serve this spaghetti with a Caesar salad, romaine and apple salad, or fresh fruit. Don’t forget the garlic bread!
How To Make
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- In a large pot of salted water, cook the pasta according to package directions.
- Drain pasta.
- In the same large pot, cook the ground beef until it is no longer pink.
- Add salt and pepper to taste. Drain or pat off any excess fat/grease.
- Pour the pasta sauce into the pot of ground beef.
- Stir and add chopped fresh basil if desired.
- A little at a time, add the cooked pasta to the sauce/beef mixture.
- (You want plenty of sauce because the pasta continues to cook as it bakes.)
- At this point you can put the pasta/sauce mixture into a casserole dish or keep it in the cooking pot.
- Top with mozzarella and parmesan cheeses.
- Bake for 20 – 25 minutes until bubbly around the edges.
A One Pot Dinner
- In a dutch oven, cook the pasta. Empty into a colander.
- In the same dutch oven, cook the ground beef.
- Add the pasta or marinara sauce.
- Top with mozzarella and parmesan cheese.
- Bake.
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Can you double this recipe?
Yes! It works well if you need to feed a crowd. A double recipe fits in a 9 x 13 pan, and bakes very evenly. You may need to increase the baking time a little. This baked spaghetti is done when the cheese is melted and it’s bubbling around the edges.
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More Main Dish Recipes
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Easy Baked Spaghetti
Ingredients
- 1 lb. lean ground beef
- 24 oz. jar of your favorite tomato/spaghetti sauce (can use more if desired)
- 12 oz. rotini pasta
- 1.5 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
- Fresh basil optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- In a large pot, cook the pasta according to package directions.
- Drain pasta.
- In the same large pot, cook the ground beef until it is no longer pink.
- Add salt and pepper to taste. Drain or pat off any excess fat/grease.
- Pour the spaghetti sauce into the pot of ground beef.
- Stir and add chopped fresh basil if desired.
- A little at a time, add the cooked pasta to the sauce/beef mixture.
- (You want plenty of sauce because the pasta continues to cook as it bakes.)
- At this point you can put the pasta/sauce mixture into a casserole dish or keep it in the cooking pot.
- Top with mozzarella and parmesan cheeses.
- Bake for 20 – 25 minutes until bubbly around the edges.
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
If you make this recipe, and love it, please come back to leave a comment and a 5-star review. I would really appreciate it, and it would help me so much. Thank you!
I would like to make the Easy Baked Spaghetti recipe. If I’m short on time, can this be prepared the previous day up to the baking and then baked just before dinner? Kind thanks
Hi Annette! To make ahead, cook the pasta and meat sauce separately. Store them separately in the refrigerator, and then combine them, and top with cheese, just before you are ready to bake. The pasta gets a little soft if it sits in the meat sauce before baking. Enjoy!
One more thing. It’s helpful to warm up the meat sauce in the microwave before adding the pasta. XO
Delicious and so simple. Most of the ingredients were in the house so it’s great to make on busy days.
Delicious meal for a family that was moving
This was such an easy recipe and quick. I definitely will add it to my repeat pasta dishes. However, I would do 1/2 recipe – it is a lot for 1 person, I have celiac and had to use gluten free pasta, I felt it absorb much of the sauce so next time I would do more sauce.
Ann, I saw the Baked Spaghetti recipe yesterday and made it. Both of my children oved it. It will be in the recipe file. AND for those of you who have not tried Ann’s mother’s roast beef… It is to die for. This summer you need to report the strawberry cool whip dessert. It is hard to keep in the frig, it goes so fast.
I like to add diced onion and green pepper, and sliced mushrooms. And, if you’re a bit more indulgent, a block of cream cheese (cubed, then melted).
I’m definitely going to make this baked spaghetti. I love On Sutton Place, it makes my day. Thank you for your creative decorating ideas, your delicious recipes and clever ideas about everything. I wish we lived next store to each other. Enjoy your new home.
Mary Lou Cross
Happy Holidays, Ann! I’m sure you and your family will enjoy your new home. I love your decorating style and, of course, your recipes! Making the baked spaghetti tonight. Thanks.
Thursday evenings my husband and I make dinner for our daughter and her family of four.
This is our opportunity to see them once a week without using a weekend day. We have been doing this for 9 years.
We made the baked spaghetti for dinner last week. It was a definite hit with Braydon and Autumn. There was a request to make it again.
Thank you for this recipe and for all the beautiful ideas you share with us.
Made your Easy Baked Spaghetti tonight. Not only is it easy to make it is delicious. Thanks for sharing your recipes.
We love the baked spaghetti recipe. So easy to put together. I made the pasta in the pressure cooker. I added some chopped onions. Delicious. I will be making this in my usual meal rotation, Excellent!
I made this recipe for my family dinner this evening. We loved it – thank you!
Thank you Ann, it looks easy and delicious!
Lucy
Thanks, Ann, for another great recipe. We love spaghetti and I am definitely going to make your recipe next week! It just sounds so yummy!
I have been making a dish like yours for over 40 years. I had run out of spaghetti, so I used shell noodles and baked it. Over the years, this amazing, hearty meal has fed my children. Now this recipe is lovingly called “Italian Surprise “. My daughter in law couldn’t believe how easy this recipe was. It has been a favorite dish to take to church potlucks, nothing ever left over!
I have been making a version of this dish for many years. My recipe uses ground Italian sausage and mostaciolli noodles. It is a family favorite in our family also.
Funny I’ve made this exact thing and we call it “lasagna-ish” – less work but similar enough tasting to get that comfy feeling :)
Sounds yummy!! Thanks for sharing with us 😊. Stay safe and healthy!!!
HH Ann! Just a note from me to you to let you know I am thinking of you. The spaghetti casserole sounds yummy since our spring like temperatures today are also going to bring rain. But more important than that is just to send a hug and hope that you and yours are able to stay well. Our blessings certainly include technology so we can stay in touch even when self-quarantined.
Dar Ann, thank you for your continued fresh, positive, inspiring posts. Reading them each day is a welcomes ‘time out’ from all that is happening in the world right now. Be safe & healthy.
Oh Ann! This is one of my family favorites and was passed down from my mother! One tip that you gave me was to mix the ground beef and pasta sauce I the noodle dish after cooking the pasta. How clever ! One less dish is always so much better. I love your blog !
This sounds so good and easy. Thank you for all if the
recipes,
I think baked spaghetti is my favorite food. I love how you tell us what you do to make it easier. Most instructions are pretty formal.. That sounds just like a mom or grandma. I hope to make this next week for our family. Wishing you a blessed weekend with a restful Sunday.
Thank you for a simple, delicious recipe. I think I will try it tonight. We are in the midst of a winter storm made worse by bitter cold here in Michigan. This will be an easy, yummy supper!
Ann,
Thanks so much for putting your favorite recipes together and sharing them with us. Your instructions are easy to follow and all seems easy to make. Will definitely be trying some and will give you feedback on the results! Love your tips and suggestions on a variety of topics and look forward to checking my emails for a new one. Your time and effort in gathering information for us is definitely appreciated.
Hi Ann,
I have an extremely picky 3 yr. old Grandson. Going to pass this to his Mommy. Any other picky kid, sneak nutrition, recipes out there? Thanks Ann
My husband loves baked spaghetti…I’ll have to surprise him with this
Looks delicious! How many servings does it make?
Hi Erica! It makes 6 to 8 servings depending on how large they are. Enjoy!
Ann, I love your ideas! I just printed out your recipe for Baked Spaghetti ! I have also made some of the pillows that you have given the instructions for. I am making some for my DIL’s for mother’s day this year.
I am in the process of doing the idea with the black planters on either side of our front door, with the wreath on the door. Your ideas are SO classy and elegant!
Sincerely,
Ida
Love the simplicity of this dish. I usually include a small pan of this, as an additional entree, when I have company and know there will be folks looking for something gluten free, using GF pasta.
This looks good! Yes, baking it can dry it out if you have to much pasta, done that. I’ll use Gretchen’s suggestion too. I like your recipes, and well, all of your wonderful ideas for the home place. Hope your parents are doing well and give Kelly a hug. Kathleen in Az
Hi Ann,
Love your updates and projects. You are number one gal! Keep up the suggestions and the hows tos. We all appreciate your enthusiam and am grateful for the time you give this project.
This looks so delish! I have had baked spagehetti before but it did not look as good as yours. I’m going to haved to give this one a try. Thanks for sharing.
This sounds delicious and so easy for a Friday night.
I think I am going to make your recipe for supper tonight as it sounds delicious, easy and I have never baked spaghetti before!! Thank you!
Kind of like a mini-lasagna….or a casserole! I have NEVER put spaghetti/sauce in the oven. I made a huge batch of spaghetti sauce the other day. Now I know ONE more thing I am going to do with it! Thanks…..yum!!!! xo Diana
I have really enjoyed your recipes. Hope you will have more sometime. Your posts are delightful and I so enjoy them
I got this recipe over 20 years ago from one of my Hospice Pts. I went home that evening and made it and from then on it was a family favorite. I just might have to make it for tonight’s meal just thinking about it makes me want some.
Thanks for the recipe! Going to make it this week!
Hi Ann, just signed on, and I’m loving your posts!
May I offer my baked spaghetti recipe? It’s such a family favorite, my kids (when they were teenagers) friends used to ask for it!
I add a little of the pasta water and a few Tbsp of butter to the sauce, because I found the sauce ‘dries out’ a bit when baked. Or simply add in that half empty jar of sauce that’s sitting in the fridge. I found one jar just isn’t quite enough… And I stir the mozzarella into the spaghetti just before baking, then cover the top with another cup of mixed mozzarella and parm mixed. Bake until bubbly, maybe 25 min.
Like I said, the kids couldn’t get enough, and there weren’t ever any leftovers. These days I’m cooking gluten free, and simply have to under cook the noodles a fair amount so they don’t get too mushy, but it’s still great using rice pasta too.
Thank you again Ann – love your stuff!
I sometimes add the pasta water too if I get carried away adding the rotinis! Thank you for sharing!
Basil flavored olive oil, instead of butter,
sounds good too. Thanks for the extra tips.
With four kids (now grown with kids of their own), I made many easy hearty one-pot dishes. I’m having grandkids over today so I’m going to make your recipe this morning. Love, love, love it! Thanks so much.
I have really enjoyed all you recipes! I hope you will continue them before long.