Creamy Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti Casserole Recipe
Creamy Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti Casserole Recipe is rich, cheesy and very comforting. This dish feels special but is easy to make.
Ingredients
- Spaghetti pasta – 16 ounces
- Olive oil – 1 tablespoon
- Ground beef – 1 pound
- Onion chopped – 1 small
- Garlic minced – 2 cloves
- Marinara sauce – 24 ounces
- Salt – 1 teaspoon
- Black pepper – ½ teaspoon
- Italian seasoning – 1 teaspoon
- Cream cheese softened – 8 ounces
- Sour cream – ½ cup
- Ricotta cheese – 1 cup
- Mozzarella cheese shredded – 2½ cups
- Parmesan cheese grated – ½ cup
- Fresh parsley chopped – 2 tablespoons
Instructions
Cook the spaghetti
- Boil spaghetti in salted water. Cook until just tender. Drain well and set aside.
Prepare meat sauce
- Heat oil in skillet. Add beef and onion. Cook until browned and fully cooked.
Add garlic and spices
- Add garlic, salt, pepper and Italian seasoning. Stir and cook for one minute.
Add marinara sauce
- Pour marinara sauce into skillet. Stir well. Simmer five minutes on low heat.
Make creamy mixture
- Mix cream cheese, sour cream, ricotta and one cup mozzarella until smooth.
Preheat oven
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a large baking dish.
Layer the spaghetti
- Spread half spaghetti into dish. Add half meat sauce evenly on top.
Add creamy layer
- Spread all creamy cheese mixture evenly over the sauce layer.
Finish layers
- Add remaining spaghetti. Top with remaining meat sauce evenly.
Add final cheese
- Sprinkle remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese evenly on top.
Bake casserole
- Cover with foil. Bake for 30 minutes until hot and bubbly.
Brown the top
- Remove foil. Bake 10 more minutes until cheese turns golden.
Rest before serving
- Let casserole rest five minutes. Garnish with parsley and serve warm.
Notes
- Cook pasta al dente for best texture.
- Use full-fat cheese for rich flavor.
- Let cream cheese soften before mixing.
- Rest casserole before cutting slices.
- Add red pepper flakes for mild heat.