Wondering what to do with spaghetti leftovers? This southern baked spaghetti turns your old noodles into a wonderful new casserole dish that the whole family will enjoy. Cheesy, flavorful, comforting, and delicious.
Recipe: $6.70 | Per Serving: $0.55 | Servings: 12
Making baked spaghetti with leftover spaghetti is one of the ways I can keep leftovers from being wasted in this house, (by meal planning with leftovers). This Easy Comfort Food Casserole tastes even better than the first night. Or at least, that's what my husband tells me.
With this leftover spaghetti casserole, you can make a brand new dish to serve up to the family without getting tired of the same old things being served too often. This recipe works really well with Homemade Ragu Spaghetti Sauce Recipe!
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🍯 Why This Recipe Works
- Great for several servings of pasta. This recipe is very forgiving for the amount of leftover spaghetti you can have. If you have 3-6 servings of spaghetti, the recipe should turn out just fine!
- Minimal ingredients. You don't need much to pull this recipe together, just some leftover spaghetti with sauce, seasonings, eggs, cheese, and bell pepper.
- Simple steps with little effort. This is a great recipe for anyone not looking to put in a lot of effort. Just combine everything and pour it into a casserole dish before baking. Then add some cheese and bake until bubbly.
🥘 Ingredients
Ingredient Notes:
Leftover spaghetti with sauce- You will need several servings of leftover spaghetti. This is great for those nights you bake up too much!
Crushed red pepper flakes- A small kick of heat really makes the flavors nice, but you can omit them if desired.
Green bell pepper- You will need a bell pepper for added color and crunch. Leave the seeds out if you want this dish mild, or leave some in if you want your casserole to be spicy.
Cottage cheese- We prefer to use cottage cheese instead of ricotta because the texture is easier for the picky kids to handle.
For specific ingredients and measurements, please see the recipe card below.
🧾 Substitutions
Ricotta cheese. Cottage cheese can be used instead if you do not have or do not wish to use ricotta cheese. My family has some aversions to the texture of ricotta, so I often swap it out for cottage cheese, which works great because it's almost always on hand.
Green bell pepper. You can use fresh or frozen green bell pepper (or any color bell pepper). Frozen bell pepper will cook up softer than fresh, but cooked fresh bell pepper adds a nice crunch. If desired, you can saute the fresh bell pepper a little to soften it before adding it to the spaghetti.
Cheddar cheese. I used cheddar cheese because I felt like it would pair nicely with the bell pepper. You can use mozzarella cheese or a combination of cheddar and mozzarella. Even an Italian blend of shredded cheeses would be nice here.
📖 Variations
Fresh Spaghetti Option: If you don't have leftover spaghetti and want to make it fresh for this southern baked spaghetti recipe, feel free to do so! Use one average-sized jar or can of pasta sauce, 1 pound of noodles, and 1 pound of cooked ground beef or sausage.
Customization Ideas: Adapt this recipe to suit your own tastes by adding chopped onion, more marinara sauce, meats, or even diced pepperoncini.
🔪 Instructions for Southern Baked Spaghetti
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease the inside of a 9x13 baking dish and set it aside.
Step 2: Add all of the ingredients to a large mixing bowl.
Step 3: Mix well to combine. Make sure no streaks of eggs remain, or else you'll end up with scrambled eggs in your casserole.
Step 4: Pour the mixture into your prepared baking dish.
Step 5: Top the pan with foil. Place the pan into the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
Step 6: Remove the pan from the oven. Take off the foil.
Step 7: Top the casserole with shredded cheese so that it is well covered.
Step 8: Bake in the oven for another 10 minutes, until melted and bubbly.
Step 9: Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Enjoy!
🍴 Recipe Tips
We use the eggs and ricotta (or cottage cheese) to bind the spaghetti noodles together as they bake. It also helps to rehydrate the noodles and keep the dish from feeling too dry.
🍳Reheating
Microwave Method: To reheat a single serving of this pasta, place it onto a microwave-safe plate and microwave for 1-2 minutes or until warmed through.
Oven Method: For reheating multiple servings in the oven, preheat the oven to 350°F and bake the pasta for about 15-20 minutes.
🥗 Side Dishes
We like to serve this dish with some classic favorite side dishes like garlic bread and salad. This Frozen Garlic Bread in Air Fryer is one of our favorites because it's so fast and simple but we almost always pair our spaghetti with The Best Canned Green Bean Recipe!
⏲️Make Ahead Instructions
Preparation: Arrange the casserole in a baking dish and top with foil before storing it in the fridge up to 24 hours in advance. Alternatively, you can freeze it up to 4 months ahead.
Thawing (if frozen): Place the frozen casserole in the fridge to thaw overnight.
Pre-Baking Preparation: When ready to bake, place the casserole dish on the counter for 1 hour as the oven preheats. This prevents the risk of breaking the dish, especially if using a glass baking dish.
Baking: Bake as directed in the recipe.
💭 Recipe FAQs
You can keep any leftovers from this dish in a well covered container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Yes, to cut down on time and effort, you can use store-bought shredded cheese. Just note that the store-bought cheese may not melt as smoothly as freshly shredded cheese.
Not sure if it's baked all of the way? That's okay! Because the meat is already cooked we really just want the noodles warmed and the eggs to be safely cooked as well. When the internal temperature of the casserole reaches 165 degrees F on an instant read thermometer, it's safe to consume.
It's made out of the same thin as regular spaghetti but with added moisture, cheese, meats (in some cases) and even some binding agents like eggs.
❤️ More Delicious Casserole Recipes
If you tried this Southern Baked Spaghetti, please leave a ⭐️ star rating and share your feedback in the 📝 comments section below. I would truly appreciate it!
📖 Recipe
Southern Baked Spaghetti
Ingredients
- 3-6 servings leftover spaghetti, with sauce ($0.00)
- 1 Tablespoon Italian seasoning ($0.24)
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes *optional ($0.08)
- 1 green bell pepper, seeded, diced *optional ($0.86)
- 2 large eggs, beaten ($0.30)
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese, shredded ($0.74)
- 15 ounces Ricotta cheese (or 24oz cottage cheese) ($2.48)
- 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded ($2.00)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease the inside of a 9x13 baking dish and set it aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine all of the ingredients until well mixed. Make sure no streaks of eggs remain or else you'll end up with scrambled eggs in your casserole.
- Pour the mixture into your prepared baking dish.
- Top the pan with foil.
- Place the pan into the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the oven. Take off the foil.
- Top the casserole with shredded cheese so that it is well covered.
- Bake in the oven for another 10 minutes, until melted and bubbly.
- Let rest for 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!
Notes
- Fresh Spaghetti Casserole: Cook 1 pound of noodles, combine with 1 pound of cooked ground beef or sausage, and pasta sauce.
- Leftovers: Store in fridge for up to 4 days.
- Cheese: Store-bought or freshly shredded cheese can be used; fresh cheese may melt more smoothly.
- Safe Temperature: Ensure internal temperature reaches 165°F for safe consumption.
- Reheating: Microwave for 1-2 minutes per serving or bake at 350°F for 15-20 minutes for multiple servings.
- Preparing in Advance: Refrigerate for up to 24 hours or freeze for up to 4 months. Thaw overnight in fridge before baking. Let dish sit on counter for 1 hour as oven preheats, especially if using glass dish, to avoid breaking.
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