Baked spaghetti
Spaghetti in a hearty meat sauce with a creamy cheese layer tucked in the middle, baked under melted cheddar and mozzarella.
- 70 min total
- 35 min hands-on
- Follow-a-recipe easy
- Serves 8
- About $1.99 a serving
- 570 calories
- Good the next day
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 8 servings.
- 1 lb 85/15 ground beef
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 can crushed tomatoes
- 1 lb spaghetti
- 4 oz cream cheese, softened
- ½ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup grated parmesan
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella
- 1 cup shredded cheddar
From your pantry
- 1½ tbsp salt, divided
- 2 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tsp sugar
- ½ tsp black pepper
Each serving has about 570 calories, 29 g protein, 56 g carbs and 26 g fat, and costs about $1.99 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No 85/15 ground beef? 90/10 ground beef works.
- No yellow onions? White onions or red onions work.
- No crushed tomatoes? Diced tomatoes work.
- No spaghetti? Fettuccine works.
- No sour cream? Plain Greek yogurt works.
- No grated parmesan? Parmesan wedge works.
- No shredded mozzarella? Provolone slices work.
- No shredded cheddar? Cheddar cheese or Mexican blend cheese or Monterey Jack cheese works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
the oven to 350°F. Fill a large pot with water, add 1 tablespoon salt, and set it on high to come .
Preheat. Preheating means turning the oven on before you start, so it’s fully hot when the food goes in. Food that starts in a cold oven cooks unevenly and doesn’t brown the same.
How you’ll know: The oven beeps or its light clicks off, usually 10 to 15 minutes after you turn it on.
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
High heat
Heat a large over medium-high, add the beef and onion, and cook 7 to 8 minutes, breaking up the beef, until no pink is left. Spoon off the fat.
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Medium-high heatTimer: 7 min 30 sec
Food safety: Ground beef, pork and lamb are done at 160°F. When it’s cooked through there’s no pink left anywhere in the pan.
Stir in the garlic and tomato paste for 1 minute, then the crushed tomatoes, Italian seasoning, sugar, pepper and 1 teaspoon salt. Turn the heat to low and 10 minutes.
Simmer. Simmering means keeping a liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles rising gently. It cooks food evenly and lets a sauce thicken without scorching on the bottom.
How you’ll know: Small, lazy bubbles break the surface every second or so, and nothing is churning.
Low heatTimer: 10 min
While the sauce , cook the spaghetti 2 minutes less than the package says, then .
Simmer. Simmering means keeping a liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles rising gently. It cooks food evenly and lets a sauce thicken without scorching on the bottom.
How you’ll know: Small, lazy bubbles break the surface every second or so, and nothing is churning.
Drain. Draining means pouring off liquid, like tipping pasta into a colander or spooning extra fat out of the pan. Pour hot grease into a can or jar, not the sink, where it hardens and clogs the pipes.
How you’ll know: Only a few drips are left, and the food isn’t sitting in a puddle.
High heat
Stir the cream cheese, sour cream and parmesan together in a bowl until smooth.
Dolly’s tip: Soft cream cheese mixes in seconds. Cold, it stays lumpy, so microwave it 15 seconds if you need to.the spaghetti with half the meat sauce and spread half of it in a 9x13-inch baking dish.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Dollop the cream cheese mixture over it and spread it out gently, then add the rest of the spaghetti and the rest of the sauce.
Scatter the mozzarella and cheddar over the top. Cover with foil and 20 minutes, then uncover and bake 10 to 15 minutes more, until bubbling.
Bake. Baking means cooking in the oven with dry heat all around the food. It cooks evenly from every side, so you can mostly leave it alone.
How you’ll know: It’s golden on top and passes the recipe’s check, like a clean toothpick or the right temperature.
Timer: 35 min
Let it 10 minutes, then cut into squares.
Rest. Resting means letting cooked meat sit for a few minutes before you cut it. It keeps cooking gently, and more of the juice stays in the meat instead of running onto the board.
How you’ll know: Loosely covered with foil, it stays hot, and very little juice runs out when you slice it.
Timer: 10 min
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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