We had friends over a few weeks ago. It was very spontaneous and we went back and forth trying to decide whose house we would get together at. Turns out both my friend and I were thinking of making a spaghetti dish, because that’s what we had ingredients for. I’ll have to eat her version sometime. Here’s my Baked Spaghetti recipe (actually a recipe my mom has made for years).
Here’s what you’ll need:
1 lb. ground beef
1 can Hunt’s spaghetti sauce
1 can tomato sauce, 15 oz
1 onion, diced
about 2 cups Mozzarella
generous shakes of oregano, basil, salt and pepper (optional)
8 oz spaghetti (the picture shows 16oz., but you only need 8oz)
Brown the meat with the onion. Drain the fat and rinse under hot water. Cook the spaghetti according to the package directions. Drain and stir it together with the meat, sauces and extra spices. Put it into a casserole dish and top with cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes, or till hot and bubbly.
The pictures of the finished dish show a double recipe. I’m not sure what I was thinking making that much spaghetti. There were only 8 of us that night. We had spaghetti coming out our ears! We did have a great time together though.
oh yummo….a great crowd pleaser for ]sure
This looks a lot like my spaghetti pie I used to make in a pie plate with most the same ingredients but with a layer of cottage cheese.
HI, this sounds good, did you add the cottage cheese on top of the spaghetti but under the mozerella??
I don’t add cottage cheese, but you could.
Been doing that dish for 5 decades…….Funny my son requested yesterday that we have it on Saturday………
Baked Spaghetti is always a favorite!!
The Baked Spaghettti looks great. I love making Baked Spaghetti from my left over spaghetti.. I also have been known to throw in some veggies, corn,zucchini, carrots, lil green pepper..
I have 12 people coming for dinner one night next week.. Thinking Baked Spaghetti.. although I promised them Breakfast for dinner the next time.. They come about once every 2 or 3 weeks.. and we have great fun!!
I am really hungry for the baked spaghetti now!! Thanks!
I love baked spaghetti. Yours looks so good right now.
It’s really too bad that my husband doesn’t like spaghetti because this looks soooo delicious! He doesn’t know what he’s missing!
This dish is awesome it may make him change his mind lol
This has to be one of my all time favorite bakes. Yours has me drooling!
Mmmm this sounds and looks sooo good!
I’d like to dive right into the middle of that stuff! yum 😛
Ooooh! Can’t wait to try this. It looks really good.
I have made this especially when I don’t have spaghetti noodles.. I use other noodles… I have never added the hamburger but sometimes I put pepperoni…just a great easy meal.
This looks perfect! A must try.
I love pasta. I love Italian food. This looks yummy-licious!
Yum! This looks fabulous. Can’t wait to try it.
I made this two days ago, and it was a hit!! It did make alot, but I am big on freezing leftovers. I threw in a can of pureed carrots into the sauce! I am always hiding vegetables when I can. I am new to your website but I will definitely keep comin back. I linked you as well on my blog. Keep up the good work!!
Just wanted to come back and tell you… I made this for dinner last night and it was a hit! So yummy!
thanks!
Shannon, I’m so glad you liked it!
Oh my, that is gorgeous!
I have made this twice and it is absolutely delicious! I will never make regular spaghetti again! Thank you so much!
I am trying this for dinner tonight, i can’t wait until the kids try it.. It looks so yummy
This seems like a really good recipe. The food looks good. Can I try this recipe? I really do love pasta especially spaghetti.
Question: If you were to freeze this would you add the cheese before freezing or after it was thawed? Would the baking istructions stay the same if it was thawed-350 degrees for 30 minutes?
Thanks!!
Natalie, you can add the cheese before freezing. You’ll probably need to bake it longer. If it’s completely thawed, but cold from the fridge then 45 to an hour. You could also stick in the oven frozen, but that will take much longer. 1 1/2 – 2 hours, I’m guessing.
*I made this baked spaghetti 12/18/2011 and it was pretty good. Instead of the large can of spaghetti sauce, I used my favorite Bottled version. I think this would taste good if it had meatballs instead of ground beef.
Good recipe for potluck
What size casserole dish you do use?
I use 9×13 for 1 recipe of it. When I doubled it (which makes a lot!) I used a deeper dish that you see in the photo.
how many does this feed? I need to feed 199 people! I thought I was in “cooking for a crwod” website!
If you’re making the baked spaghetti for a lot of people, see the directions on this post. It will tell you how to make enough for 100 people. Of course, you’ll need to double that.
I made this tonight, and just threw the noodles into the cast iron pan I used to prep the sauce, meat and onions. Worked like a charm, and it was a big hit with my wife and son!
This looks yummy!
This recipe was listed under the slow cooker meal plan today (10/28/13). Can this be done in the slow cooker? If so, what are the directions for how to do that? Thanks!
Debra, you assemble the recipe but put it in the slow cooker crock instead of casserole dish. Then just heat it on low for several hours. Or, you can make it ahead and freeze it (or the day before and refrigerate it). If it’s cold, heat it for about 5 hours to get it hot through.
Thank, Tiffany! Will be trying this this weekend!
The ingredients on the first part said 2 bay leaves…these were not mentioned in the full recipe.
Sheila, there aren’t any bay leaves in this recipe. I’m not sure where you see them mentioned, but no bay leaves needed.
There is a post on Incredible Recipes Facebook page for The Ultimate Cheesy Baked Spaghetti that lists completely different ingredients (including bay leaves), but has a link to this page for the directions! I was totally confused by this and posted a comment on the Facebook page asking about the differences. You might want to check it out. This may be where Sheila saw the reference to bay leaves.
https://www.facebook.com/117925708371194/photos/a.117927805037651.24799.117925708371194/282415681922195/?type=1
Wendy, thanks for linking to that. It explains a couple of things. I’ve been wondering why this baked spaghetti recipe has been getting so much traffic lately. And I also wonder why they had a different ingredient list. That’s strange. That must be why Sheila asked about the bay leaves.
You’re welcome! Does the picture you used go with your ingredient list? If it does, then I’ll follow your list because it looks delicious!
Yes, my picture goes with my ingredient list. Enjoy!
….and different cheeses
Tiffany
I just found an old recipe that was my Great Aunts for chili sauce. It calls for 18 tomatoes plus spices (I’ll be glad to share it with you if you are interested) and I remember it being delicious. It calls for cooking on top of the stove for 1 1/2 hours to thicken it. Do you think if I did this in the crockpot for about 3 or 4 hours it would thicken it? Should I leave the top off for part of the time? Maybe I should stop being lazy and just doit on the top of the stove, but I love my crockpot.
If you have time to think about it Please let me know your opinion. Eleanor
That sounds like a good recipe! I’ve never cooked with fresh tomatoes in the crockpot before. I think it would work, but you may need to leave the lid off or cracked for a while. If you try it, let me know how it turned out.
This was a delicious recipe. I
liked it. And even my three kids did too.
I will be adding this to my recipe book.
And I will be making it again.
I know this is an old post but I’m making this for dinner tonight 🙂
It is an old post, but it’s a good recipe 🙂 I hope you like it!
How many does the ‘regular’ recipe feed? I’m worried it won’t feed my very big eaters, with half of a box of pasta…..Thanks! Can’t wait to try it!!!
Shari, it feeds 6-8 people. I know it doesn’t seem like it would. That’s what I thought the other day when I made it, but it really goes a long way.
Thanks Tiffany! That’s a big money saver!!
This is so delicious! I tweaked it a little and used a spicy sauce and added red pepper for some extra flavor and it was perfect. Some parmasian and bread with it and its good to go. My family loved it!
I make the same recipe occasionally, but to change it up a bit, I add turkey pepperoni and then make layers like you are making lasagna….this also is very good !
After you drain the fat from the browned meat and onion, do you actually rinse it in hot water??? Or is it just the pan??? Very confusing.
I actually rinse the meat under hot water. You dont’ have to do it that way though.
This recipe looks really good good and easy, thank you for sharing it. I want to try this recipe to serve 100 people for a church meal, what would be the portion size to dish up when serving, like one cup? Also, you mentioned the industrial size aluminum pans, Would it be the 21 X 10 size? Thank you, Susanne
I make Loaded Spaghetti, adding pepperoni, mushrooms, Italian sausage and maybe bell peppers with onions…delish!!!!
I’d like to make this but vegan style instead of using chop meat. What could I use as a substitute for the meat? I was thinking of using eggplant but I am not sure.
You could add eggplant, bell peppers, zucchini. Use whole wheat pasta to up the nutrition even more.
This is an EXCELLENT recipe and I thoroughly enjoyed it. You were right about only needing 1/2 box (8 oz) of spaghetti. I did double the recipe and needed 2 13 x 9 pans. I’ll freeze it up and use it for lunches and dinners as needed.
This is very similar to the recipe that is a family favorite at our house. The big difference is that I add a can of cream of mushroom soup. Gives the dish a little more sauce and just a bit of creaminess (not really noticeable for those that like a pure red sauce). Make sure to bake until the cheese starts to brown. Tastes so good!
Is this the recipe from the Hunts Tomato Sauce can label from the 1960s?
If not, does anyone have that particular recipe?
I don’t know if it is or not. My mom gave me the recipe.