Easy Baked Spaghetti with Cheddar Cheese

This easy, oh so cheesy Baked Spaghetti contains layers of bubbly cheese, hearty meat sauce, and perfectly cooked spaghetti. It’s a great, kid-friendly weeknight dinner for busy families.

This Easy Baked Spaghetti was one of our daughter’s favorites and it’s now being enjoyed by our grands! There’s nothing I love more than when the grandkids come to visit. I always make a big homemade meal for them, but homemade doesn’t have to mean time-consuming or difficult. This baked spaghetti is quick to make and gives us more time to be together.

If you’ve been around here for very long, you’ll know that I have no problem taking the occasional shortcut in the kitchen. For this easy baked spaghetti recipe, I use purchased spaghetti sauce instead of my usual homemade Bolognese sauce. Not only does it save time, it cuts the ingredients list down to almost nothing!

In fact, I’ll bet that you have all of the ingredients on hand right now to make this baked pasta casserole. All you’ll need are pasta, ground beef, Cheddar cheese, spaghetti sauce, and Parmesan cheese.

You can bet your bottom dollar that kids (and adults, too!) will love this recipe. It’s so easy to make that you’re sure to add it to your go-to weeknight recipe list.

While the spaghetti bakes, you can make a nice tossed salad, along with some cheesy onion and herb bread, and you’re good to go!

On nights when you have a little more time, why don’t you try another of my spaghetti recipes? These Jumbo Meatballs and Spaghetti are always a hit as are my Baked Meatballs and Spaghetti and my Pasta with Tomato Basil Sauce.

• Ground beef (if you use very lean ground beef for this recipe, you probably won’t even need to drain it)
• Purchased spaghetti sauce (my personal favorite is the traditional Ragu, but you can use any brand you like)
• Spaghetti (kids love it because it’s a really familiar shape but you can substitute almost any pasta)
• Cheddar cheese (again, a flavor, color, and texture very familiar to children; they love Cheddar cheese)
• Parmesan cheese (not strictly necessary, but it adds a little extra something to finish off the topping)
• Salt and pepper (as always, that classic seasoning combination that enhances all savory recipes)

Start by putting a large pot of salted water on to boil and preheating the oven to 350.

Make the Sauce

1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Add the ground beef and cook, stirring until it’s nicely browned with no visible pink color remaining. Drain off any excess fat and return the ground beef to the pan.
3. Add the spaghetti sauce, salt, and pepper, and stir that together with the ground beef.
4. Bring the mixture to a bubble, cover it, and reduce the heat to a simmer.

By this time, the water should be boiling so you can drop in your pasta and let it cook according to the package directions. When the pasta is done, drain it and start assembling the casserole.

Assemble the Casserole

5. Put about 1/3 of the meat sauce on the bottom of your casserole dish.
6. Add about half the cooked pasta.
7. Top with half the cheddar cheese.
8. Add another third of the sauce and the remaining pasta.

9. End with the rest of the sauce and top with the remaining one cup of cheddar and the Parmesan cheese on top.

Cook Until Bubbly

10. Bake for 30 minutes or until bubbly.

Cool Slightly

11. Remove the dish from the oven and allow it to cool slightly before serving.

• You can change the recipe by substituting either ground turkey or ground pork for the ground beef. Or make a meatless version by simply leaving it out or substituting with carrots, broccoli, or cauliflower.
• Use any pasta shape that you have on hand. I like long, thin pasta (spaghetti, linguini, bucatini, etc.) for this recipe, but if you have small children try macaroni, penne, or bow ties. Those shapes are easier for little ones to handle. Or break up your spaghetti into small pieces before cooking.

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• Homemade Jumbo Meatballs and Spaghetti
• Pasta Arrabiata
• Creamy Ham and Red Bell Pepper Pasta
• Gnocchi with Tomato Sauce
• Mediterranean Shrimp with Angel Hair Pasta
• Italian Sausage Alfredo
• Italian Style Pork Chops with Pasta

📖 Recipe

— This post was originally published on June 5, 2011. It has been updated with new photos and additional information.