Baked Spaghetti – Make Ahead + Freezer Friendly!

This Baked Spaghetti recipe has can be made with ground beef, sausage, or meatballs! Top it with lots of mozzarella cheese and bake it right away or save it for a busy weeknight dinner. You can even freeze the assembled casserole for another week!

Don’t forget a side of Garlic Bread with Cheese!

Baked Spaghetti

This cheesy baked spaghetti recipe truly is a life saver. It’s so easy to throw together and it makes a great make-ahead recipe and freezer food.

It’s the perfect comfort food to serve with my Garlic Bread with Cheese! Read on and see how easy it is to make, what ingredients you need, and how you can easily make it ahead of time and pop it in the oven on busy weeknight.

How to Make it

See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.

Boil salted water for spaghetti and cook according to package instructions. Meanwhile, brown ground beef in a skillet and drain if needed. Add onions and peppers, cook until softened. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute.

Add marinara sauce and stir to combine. I prefer to use my homemade marinara or Rao’s. 

Add Ricotta and Parmesan and stir until combined and heated through. Add a dab of cream cheese if desired, then mix in the cooked spaghetti.

Transfer half of the spaghetti to a 9 x 13 casserole dish. Top with 2 cups of mozzarella. Add remaining spaghetti.

Add 2 more cups mozzarella cheese. Bake at 375° for 15 minutes, or until the cheese is hot and melted. Let sit 5 minutes prior to serving.

Baked Spaghetti with Meatballs

If your family loves the classic spaghetti and meatball combo, you could also make Bobby Flay’s Meatball recipe or my Slow Cooker Meatballs.

Just mix the cooked meatballs into the sauce, combine it with the spaghetti, top with cheese, and bake!

Make Ahead Method

Option 1: Assemble and Refrigerate:

• Cover and refrigerate for up to two days.
• Bake refrigerated casserole at 375° for 30 minutes covered, then for 10 minutes uncovered.

Option 2: Assemble and Freeze:

• Cover with 2 layers of foil and freeze for up to 3 months. These disposable aluminum baking pans are great for the freezer.
• Let frozen casserole thaw in the fridge overnight and bake at 375° for 30 minutes covered, then for 10 minutes uncovered.
•  You can also bake from a frozen state and add an additional 1 hour of baking time, covered.

Pro Tip:

If your 9 x 13 casserole dish is filled to the brim, place it on a baking sheet in the oven to catch any overflow, just in case. Alternatively, you can use an 11 x 15 inch baking dish.

Storage

Refrigerator

• Baked spaghetti should be refrigerated and is best if used within three days.

Freezer

• Baked spaghetti makes a great freezer food after it’s been baked. It’s best to wrap portion sizes in foil and place them in a labeled freezer bag.
• To reheat from a frozen state, leave it in the foil and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or more, depending on the serving size.

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Baked Spaghetti

Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes minutes

5 from 25 ratings

Servings: 6

Tap or hover to scale

Print Pin Review

This Baked Spaghetti recipe is easy to make with ground beef, sausage, or meatballs! Add your favorite marinara sauce, ricotta cheese, cream cheese, and your favorite additions! Serve it casserole style with plenty of mozzarella cheese. You can even freeze it and bake it another day!

Ingredients

• ▢ ¾ lb. spaghetti
• ▢ 1 pound ground beef, can also use ground sausage or turkey
• ▢ 1 medium onion, diced
• ▢ 1 green bell pepper, diced
• ▢ 2 cloves garlic, minced
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Italian seasonings
• ▢ 32 oz. marinara sauce
• ▢ 8 oz. Ricotta cheese, equal to 1 cup.
• ▢ 2 Tablespoons cream cheese, at room temperature
• ▢ 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
• ▢ 4 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
• ▢ Parsley, to garnish

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Instructions

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Cook the spaghetti according to package instructions, while waiting for the water to reach a boil, proceed with the below.
• Cook the ground beef in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until browned and cooked through. Drain excess grease.
• Add the seasonings, diced onions, and peppers. Sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and heat for 1 minute.
• Add the marinara, ricotta, Parmesan, and cream cheese. Reduce heat to low and allow it to heat through.
• Add the drained spaghetti, use kitchen tongs to gently toss until well-combined. Note: It will be very saucy but the pasta is going to continue to absorb it as it bakes.
• Add half of the spaghetti to a lightly greased 9 x 13 inch baking dish and top with half (2 cups), of the mozzarella.
• Top with remaining spaghetti, then with the rest of the mozzarella.
• If serving immediately, bake uncovered for 15 minutes, or until the cheese is hot and melted. Let sit for 5 minutes prior to serving. Serve with a side of Garlic Bread with Cheese.
• See notes for instructions on baking and serving on another date.

Notes

Make Ahead Method

Option 1: Assemble and Refrigerate:

• Cover and refrigerate for up to two days.
• Bake refrigerated casserole at 375° for 30 minutes covered, then for 10 minutes uncovered.

Option 2: Assemble and Freeze:

• Cover with 2 layers of foil and freeze for up to 3 months. These disposable aluminum baking pans are great for the freezer.
• Let frozen casserole thaw in the fridge overnight and bake at 375° for 30 minutes covered, then for 10 minutes uncovered.
• You can also bake from a frozen state and add an additional 1 hour of baking time, covered.
Pro Tip: If your 9 x 13 casserole dish is filled to the brim, place it on a baking sheet in the oven to catch any overflow. (This isn't likely but just in case.) Alternatively, you can use an 11 x 15 inch baking dish.

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Baked Spaghetti with Meatballs

If your family loves the classic spaghetti and meatball combo, you should make my meatball recipe instead of using ground beef.

Just mix the cooked meatballs into the sauce, combine it with the spaghetti, top with cheese, and bake!

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Ricotta Cheese: The recipe calls for 8 oz. (1 cup) of ricotta. You can use up to 16 oz. if you prefer, you may just need a larger (11 x 15 inch) casserole dish. If necessary, you can substitute cottage cheese.

Nutrition

Calories: 780kcal, Carbohydrates: 57g, Protein: 46g, Fat: 41g, Saturated Fat: 21g, Cholesterol: 141mg, Sodium: 1646mg, Potassium: 996mg, Fiber: 5g, Sugar: 10g, Vitamin A: 1509IU, Vitamin C: 28mg, Calcium: 584mg, Iron: 4mg

Did you try this recipe?Mention @TheCozyCook on Instagram or tag #thecozycook!

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Author: Stephanie

Note: This recipe was originally posted in 2019 and was since republished. If preferred, you can access the previous version here.  (Although I recommend you try the updated version!)