Million Dollar Spaghetti
Creamy, meaty baked spaghetti with a secret cream cheese layer that bakes into pure comfort in under an hour. Perfect for potlucks, family dinners, or a weeknight hug.
Equipment
- Large Pot
- Large Skillet
- Mixing bowl
- 9×13-inch baking dish
Ingredients
Pasta
- 1 lb spaghetti
Meat Sauce
- 1 lb ground beef (80/20)
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 jar (24 oz) good marinara sauce
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
- 0.5 tsp red pepper flakes
- salt and pepper to taste
Cream Layer
- 1 block (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup cottage cheese (full fat) or ricotta
- 0.25 cup grated Parmesan (for cream layer)
Topping and Assembly
- 3 cups shredded low-moisture mozzarella
- 0.25 cup grated Parmesan (for top)
- 1 tbsp olive oil (for tossing pasta)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Cook spaghetti 1 minute less than package directions. Drain, toss with a drizzle of olive oil, and set aside.
- In a large skillet, brown the ground beef over medium-high heat until no longer pink. Drain fat. Add onion and cook until soft, 4-5 minutes. Add garlic, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Cook 1 minute. Stir in marinara and simmer 5 minutes until slightly thickened.
- In a medium bowl, mix softened cream cheese, cottage cheese (or ricotta), and 1/4 cup Parmesan until combined. A few lumps are fine.
- Spread a thin layer of meat sauce (about 1 cup) on the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish. Layer half the spaghetti. Dollop half the cream mixture and spread gently. Sprinkle 1 cup mozzarella. Repeat: meat sauce, remaining spaghetti, remaining cream mixture, remaining mozzarella. Top with remaining meat sauce and 1/4 cup Parmesan.
- Cover with foil (spray underside with cooking spray). Bake 25 minutes. Remove foil and bake 15-20 minutes more until golden and bubbly.
- Let rest 10 minutes before slicing. This sets the layers for clean squares.
Notes
Let the casserole rest 10 minutes after baking for clean slices. To make ahead: assemble, cover, refrigerate up to 3 days, add 10 min to covered bake. Freeze up to 3 months. For a lighter version, use turkey sausage and low-fat dairy.