Baked Spaghetti Recipe

Name: Baked Spaghetti
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 105 min
Total time: 115 min
Yield: 10
Ingredients: 3/4 pound vermicelli pasta or thin spaghetti; 1 pound bulk sweet Italian sausage (removed from casings); 1/4 pound shiitake or cremini mushrooms, roughly chopped; 1 medium onion, chopped, about 1 1/2 cups; 2 cloves garlic, minced; 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes; 3 cups (24 ounces) marinara or meatless tomato sauce, homemade or store bought; 1 1/2 cups water; 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning; 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley; 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, plus more for greasing the casserole dish; 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese; 2 large eggs, beaten; 1 cup ricotta cheese; 2 to 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

How to Make Baked Spaghetti

You make baked spaghetti almost the same way you would make lasagna. It's a layered, baked casserole with a tomato-based meat sauce, mozzarella, ricotta, and Parmesan cheeses, and pasta.

The main differences are that you use thin spaghetti noodles instead of wide lasagna pasta, and you toss in a couple of beaten eggs with the cooked noodles.

The eggs help bind the noodles in place so you can easily cut and serve even rectangles without them falling apart.

It's the perfect thing to serve a hungry teenage boy who is visiting for spring break, who somehow manages to eat his weight every day, who loves to skateboard and can play Minecraft for hours without getting bored. Not that I know anyone like this at all.

Jarred Sauce or Homemade? Your Choice

You can make your own or use a good quality jarred sauce. To make your own, make a double recipe of our basic tomato sauce, and blend it smooth to use for this baked spaghetti.

A Word About Mushrooms

If you don't like mushrooms, please feel free to leave them out. If you love mushrooms, I recommend using shiitake because they are so wonderfully flavorful. Or you could augment creminis with dried porcinis that have been reconstituted in hot water.

A serving of Baked Spaghetti being lifted from a casserole — Simply Recipes / Cambrea Gordon

How to Store and Reheat Leftovers

Half the pleasure of making baked spaghetti or lasagna is enjoying the leftovers! This baked spaghetti will keep in the fridge for at least five days. Reheat individual slices in the microwave, or warm the whole casserole (covered with foil) in the oven at 350°F until bubbly again.

How to Freeze Lasagna and Other Casseroles

Baked Spaghetti

Prep Time 10 mins

Cook Time 105 mins

Total Time 115 mins

Servings 8 to 10 servings

Save time on prep by chopping the onions and mushrooms while the sausage is cooking, and grating the cheese while the pasta is cooking.

You can assemble this up to a day ahead. Just cover it and keep it in the fridge, and add a few minutes to the bake time.

3/4 pound vermicelli pasta or thin spaghetti
1 pound sweet Italian sausage (removed from casings)
1/4 pound shiitake or cremini mushrooms, roughly chopped
1 medium onion, chopped, about 1 1/2 cups
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 cups (24 ounces) marinara or meatless tomato sauce, homemade or store-bought
1 1/2 cups water
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, plus more for greasing the casserole dish
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 large eggs, beaten
1 cup ricotta cheese
2 to 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Heat salted water for the pasta:

Put a large pot of water on the stove on high heat. Add salt to the water, about 2 tablespoons of salt for 4 quarts of water. While the pasta water is heating, continue with the next steps.
Cook the sausage:

Break up the sausage into clumps into a large sauté pan. Turn the heat on, to medium. Slowly cook the sausage, breaking the sausage into smaller pieces as it cooks. The slow cooking will help render the fat. Cook until the sausage is cooked through, no longer pink anywhere.

Remove the sausage from the pan with a slotted spoon and set aside. Drain the fat from the pan (not into your sink or you may clog it!)

Simply Recipes / Cambrea Gordon
Cook the onions, mushrooms, and spices:

Add the chopped onions and mushrooms to the pan. Increase the heat to medium high. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onions become translucent and the mushrooms have given up some of their liquid.

Add the minced garlic and red chili pepper flakes, and cook a minute more.

Simply Recipes / Cambrea Gordon
Simmer the marinara, sausage, and seasonings:

Add the marinara sauce and the 1 1/2 cups of water to the pan with the onions and mushrooms. Add the sausage back to the pan. Add the Italian seasoning and chopped parsley.

Bring to a simmer and reduce the heat to a very low simmer on the lowest setting on your stovetop. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes or so while you make the pasta.

Simply Recipes / Cambrea Gordon
Cook and drain the pasta:

By this time your pasta water should be boiling. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook, uncovered, at a rolling boil, for 5 to 6 minutes, al dente.

Note that the pasta will continue to cook and absorb some of the sauce when it is in the casserole dish in the oven, so the pasta should be al dente. When ready, drain the pasta and rinse in cold water.
Toss with olive oil, then eggs:

Place the cooled pasta in a large bowl. Toss with olive oil, then the Parmesan, then 2 beaten eggs. It's easiest to do this with your (clean) hands.

Simply Recipes / Cambrea Gordon
Preheat oven and prepare casserole pan:

Preheat your oven to 350°F. Rub the inside of a 9x13 inch casserole dish (a Pyrex dish works great) with olive oil.
Layer sauce and pasta in casserole dish:

Spread 1 cup of the sauce over the bottom of the casserole dish.

Place half of the pasta in an even layer in the casserole dish. Cover with half of the sauce.

Simply Recipes / Cambrea Gordon

Simply Recipes / Cambrea Gordon

Simply Recipes / Cambrea Gordon
Add the cheeses and layer again:

Dot the sauce with all of the ricotta cheese. Sprinkle half of the Mozzarella over the ricotta layer.

Layer again with the remaining pasta, the remaining sauce, and the remaining mozzarella.

Simply Recipes / Cambrea Gordon
Bake:

Cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes at 350°F. Remove the foil and bake an additional 20 minutes uncovered. Remove from oven and let rest for at least 10 minutes before cutting into squares and serving.

Did you love the recipe? Give us some stars and leave a comment below!

Simply Recipes / Cambrea Gordon

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
352	Calories
18g	Fat
24g	Carbs
24g	Protein

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 8 to 10
Amount per serving
Calories	352
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 18g	23%
Saturated Fat 8g	40%
Cholesterol 85mg	28%
Sodium 1004mg	44%
Total Carbohydrate 24g	9%
Dietary Fiber 3g	9%
Total Sugars 6g
Protein 24g
Vitamin C 4mg	22%
Calcium 388mg	30%
Iron 2mg	13%
Potassium 519mg	11%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.