Southern Baked Spaghetti

Southern Baked Spaghetti is a comforting dish bursting with flavor. Tender spaghetti is mixed with a hearty homemade meat sauce, smothered in a creamy ricotta filling, and topped off with melty cheese to make a meal that the whole family will love!

4.67 from 3 votes

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Course: Main Dishes

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 1

Total Time: 1 10

Servings: servings

Author: Jennifer Stewart

Ingredients

Spaghetti Sauce

2 pounds ground beef I like 93/7
1 medium onion diced
1 green bell pepper seeded, diced
3 cloves garlic minced fine
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
28 ounces tomato sauce
28 ounces diced tomatoes

Ricotta Filling

24 ounces ricotta cheese
1 cup parmesan cheese
1 large egg
salt and pepper to taste

Additional Ingredients

1 pound 16 oz spaghetti
2 cups mozzarella cheese shredded

Instructions

Prepare the spaghetti sauce
In a large, deep skillet or pot, brown the ground beef, onion, and bell pepper until the beef is no longer pink and the onion and bell pepper are starting to soften.
Add the garlic, spices, diced tomatoes, and tomato sauce. Stir to combine.
Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer and let reduce in volume while you cook the spaghetti.
Cook the spaghetti
In a large pot, bring 6 quarts of water to a boil.
Add some salt and the spaghetti noodles.
Cook, stirring occasionally, until the pasta noodles are al dente (roughly 9-11 minutes or according to package directions).
Drain and place in a large bowl.
Prepare the ricotta filling
In a medium sized bowl, combine the ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese, and egg.
Mix to thoroughly combine.
Assemble the spaghetti casserole
Preheat the oven to 375F.
Add the spaghetti sauce to the pasta noodles, reserving 2 cups.
Toss to combine the noodles and sauce.
In a deep dish 9 x 13 baking dish, pour the 1 cup reserved sauce and spread around, covering the bottom of the dish.
Add 1/3 of the spaghetti and sauce mixture, spreading it into a single, even layer.
Add 1/2 the ricotta mixture over the noodles spreading to the edges.
Top with another 1/3 of the spaghetti and sauce mixture.
Add the remaining ricotta mixture and spread out.
Top with the remaining spaghetti and sauce mixture and cup of sauce.
Cover the casserole with the shredded mozzarella cheese.
Bake uncovered for 30-40 minutes or until the casserole is bubbly and the cheese is melted.
Remove from the oven and let cool slightly.
Enjoy!

Video

Notes

To keep the texture of your spaghetti firm, slightly undercook, just to al dente as they will continue to cook when they go into the oven.

For extra smooth melted cheese, shred your own rather than buying the pre-shredded bags of cheese. Most pre-shredded bags of cheese are coated with anti-caking agents that do not melt as well and can throw off the taste.

If you aren't a fan of ricotta or cannot find it, replace with cream cheese or cottage cheese.

Double the recipe and make a second batch to freeze later!

Nutrition