As a lover of cooking and food, I treasure having my kids in the kitchen with me. I love teaching them simple cooking skills that I know they will carrying with them as they grow. And they learn how to feel confident in the kitchen as I pass down this tradition of sharing love through food. My Baked Spaghetti recipe is a great recipe to make with kids. It has moving parts and timing, so it is perfect for teaching those skills, while being a relatively uncomplicated recipe. This easy pasta casserole is like a lazy lasagna without the ricotta. It uses my meat sauce recipe which brings the most perfect flavor.
How to Make Baked Spaghetti
Tips and Tricks for Cooking Spaghetti
Use enough water. We are making a pound of spaghetti, so you need to use 4 to 6 quarts (16 to 24 cups) of water.Bring your water to a roaring boil. Make sure you see really big bubbles before you add the dry noodles.Salt the water. When you add the dry spaghetti also throw in 1 teaspoon of kosher salt.Note the cooking time on the box of the spaghetti. Set a timer for the time called for, making sure to pick the lower end of the time range. We are baking the spaghetti so a little underdone is okay.
Storing and Reheating Left Overs
Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for up to five days. To reheat, cover and microwave at half power until warmed through. You can also cover and bake just the portion you want to eat. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
Making Easy Baked Spaghetti Ahead
This is a great recipe to make on a Sunday afternoon and then wrap and put in the refrigerator when you get home from work Monday evening.
Freezing Spaghetti Bake
This spaghetti bake recipe can be made ahead of time and frozen. We are using a disposable baking dish in this version so the recipe can go straight from the freezer to the oven without cracking.
Tips and Tricks
Grate your own cheese. The melty cheese is one of the highlights of this recipe. Block cheese that you grate yourself will melt a lot better than pre-shredded cheese.Swap in store bought sauce. Cook the beef with the garlic and onion, and where you would add the tomatoes and spices, put in a 24 ounce jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce. Skip the simmering, just stir in the sauce until it is warmed through.Make it vegetarian. Swap the meat that you brown at the beginning for vegetables. Good options are carrots, celery, zucchini, and bell peppers. Sauce them in 2 tablespoons of olive oil before moving on to step 4. Swap the ground beef for ground turkey. Brown the ground turkey in 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
What to Serve with Baked Spaghetti
I love the delicious flavors in this recipe for baked spaghetti. To round it out for dinner, I like adding a vegetable side dish. Here are a few that would go perfectly with this casserole.
Parmesan Roasted BroccoliMediterranean SaladOven Roasted Asparagus
Other Make Ahead Baked Pasta
If you love the idea of making a double batch of this recipe and freezing one, let me share with you a few others.
Baked ZitiStuffed ShellsChicken Tetrazzini
If you make this baked spaghetti recipe or any of my other recipes, please leave me a comment and let me know what you think!
