Baked Spasagna – The BEST Baked Spaghetti

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Baked Spasagna – lasagna and spaghetti in one! Baked pasta with mozzarella, ricotta, sour cream, half-and-half and parmesan. Topped with a quick meat sauce. SOOO good! Makes a great freezer meal too. Perfect for a potluck!

Baked Spasanga - lasagna and spaghetti in one! Baked pasta with mozzarella, ricotta, sour cream, half-and-half and parmesan. Topped with a quick meat sauce. SOOO good! Makes a great freezer meal too. Perfect for a potluck!

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The BEST Baked Spaghetti

I came across this recipe for Baked Spasagna on the internet. The description said this was the recipe for a dish at the restaurant Cheddar’s. I’ve never been to (or heard of) Cheddar’s, but the recipes sounded delicious. I immediately added it to the weekly menu.

We both really liked this dish. It makes a ton. We made half of the recipe below and it was easily enough for 6 to 8 people. This would be a great dish for a potluck or any other time to need to feed a crowd.

How to Make Baked Spasagna

This was similar to my Baked Cream Cheese Spaghetti Casserole, but cheesier. It uses 2 pounds of mozzarella cheese. Yes, 2 pounds. I told you it was cheesier! It came together quickly. I mixed the cheese mixture up while the pasta cooked and finished the meat sauce off while the casserole was in the oven.

Can use Italian sausage, breakfast sausage, ground beef, or ground turkey in this recipe.
I used 2 pounds of shredded mozzarella cheese. Feel free to use an Italian cheese blend or provolone.
Can I make Baked Spasagna Casserole ahead of time? Yes! You can make the casserole ahead of time and refrigerate. You may need to add a few minutes to the cooking time if baking straight from the refrigerator.
Can I freeze Baked Spasagna Casserole? Yes! You can assemble the casserole and freeze for later.
To bake casserole after freezing, thaw completely and bake as directed below.
Can I half the recipe? Yes. You can make half of the recipe and bake it in a 9-inch baking dish. The cooking time would stay the same.
This makes a lot of pasta. I sometimes divide the recipe into two pans and bake one and freeze one for later.
I used a jar of store-bought spaghetti sauce. My favorite brands are Trader Joe’s Roasted Garlic Marinara (green label), Rao’s, or La Famiglia DelGrosso sauce.
If you don’t like ricotta, you can try substituting cottage cheese.

What to Serve with Cheddar’s Baked Spasagna

This Baked Spasagna has quickly become a family favorite. It is super easy to make and everyone LOVES it. This is a very hearty dish so you don’t need very many side dishes to go with it. A simple salad and some garlic bread is perfect! Here are a few of our favorite recipes from the blog that go great with this cheesy spaghetti casserole:

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Baked Spasagna

Author: Plain Chicken

Yield: people

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 30

Total Time 45

Ingredients:

24- oz spaghetti
4 (8-oz) packages shredded mozzarella cheese (yes – 2 lb of cheese)
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 cup sour cream
1¼ cups half-and-half
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese, divided
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp basil
½ tsp pepper
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp salt
1 (26-oz) jar spaghetti sauce
1 lb Italian sausage or ground beef

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350ºF.
Cook spaghetti according to package directions, drain.
In a large bowl, stir together sour cream, ricotta, half-and-half, mozzarella, oregano, basil, pepper, garlic, salt, and half the Parmesan cheese. Add spaghetti and toss until well coated.
Pour spaghetti mixture into 9×13 pan lightly sprayed with cooking spray. Top spaghetti with remaining Parmesan cheese.
Cover dish aluminum foil and bake 30 minutes.
While pasta is baking, prepare meat sauce. Brown Italian sausage in skillet. Drain and return to skillet. Add spaghetti sauce and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes.
Remove pasta from the oven. Cut into squares and top with meat sauce. Sprinkle with additional grated parmesan cheese.

Notes:

Can use Italian sausage, breakfast sausage, ground beef, or ground turkey in this recipe.

I used 2 pounds of shredded mozzarella cheese. Feel free to use an Italian cheese blend or provolone.

You can make the casserole ahead of time and refrigerate. You may need to add a few minutes to the cooking time if baking straight from the refrigerator.

You can assemble the casserole and freeze for later.

To bake casserole after freezing, thaw completely and bake as directed below.

You can make half of the recipe and bake it in a 9-inch baking dish. The cooking time would stay the same.

This makes a lot of pasta. I sometimes divide the recipe into two pans and bake one and freeze one for later.

I used a jar of store-bought spaghetti sauce. My favorite brands are Trader Joe’s Roasted Garlic Marinara (green label), Rao’s, or La Famiglia DelGrosso sauce.

If you don’t like ricotta, you can try substituting cottage cheese.

Steph