Cheesy Baked Spaghetti is an easy, tasty dinner for any day of the week! It’s topped with gooey cheese, filled with a meaty sauce and pasta noodles. It’s delicious, comforting, and a meal that the whole family will love!

This baked spaghetti is a must for those busy weeknights because it’s so easy to throw together! It’s basically foolproof. It can be made hours ahead of time, it’s super simple to throw together, and it’s a great freezer food. It’s the perfect comfort dish to serve with my Fluffy Homemade Breadsticks! I’ll have the easy steps below in recipe notes on how you can easily prepare this ahead of time and just pop it in the oven whenever you’re ready.

You might be wondering why you can’t just serve the spaghetti dish after everything is tossed together. It’d basically be spaghetti and meatsauce. But baking it gives you that amazing, crispy, cheesy top that you won’t get otherwise. That’s my favorite part! Baked spaghetti is more than just tomato sauce over noodles and meat. It’s heartier with more of a bite to it and more of a casserole type dish.

The spaghetti in this recipe needs to be cooked before baking. Follow the instructions on the pasta package and eliminate two minutes from cooking time. You want the noodles to be more firm since they will be baking in the oven for 30 minutes. Drain immediately after cooking.

Yield: 4-6 servings

INGREDIENTS

• 12 oz. spaghetti 
• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 398 mL diced tomatoes, undrained 
• 213 mL tomato sauce
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 1/4 teaspoon salt 
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350F and spray a 2 qt casserole dish with cooking spray; set aside. 
2. Cook spaghetti two minutes shy of package directions.
3. In a large skillet, cook ground beef, green bell pepper and onion over high heat and brown while breaking it apart until no longer pink; drain.
4. Add in diced tomatoes (undrained), tomato sauce, brown sugar, salt, chili powder, pepper, garlic powder and cayenne pepper and stir until well combined.
5. Drain pasta, add them to the meat sauce, and toss them well.
6. Transfer to the greased baking dish, cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil, add the shredded cheddar cheese on top, and bake uncovered for an additional 10 minutes.

RECIPE NOTES

• Make ahead: Prepare the casserole as stated but stop before baking. Cover with aluminum foil and place in the refrigerator until ready to use. When you are ready to bake it, remove from the refrigerator and let sit at room temperature while the oven preheats. Then bake, covered, for about 35-40 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Uncover, top with cheese and continue to bake until cheese is melted.
• Leftovers: Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
• Freezer tip: Freeze in an airtight container for up to three months.
• Reheat leftovers: to reheat from a frozen, leave it covered with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or more, depending on the size.

 Adapted from Taste of Home