This Million Dollar Spaghetti tastes as good as it sounds! This layered pasta bake has tender noodles, creamy cheese and a hearty meat sauce. It’s like combining spaghetti and lasagna into one dish!
As parents of two growing children, we are experts at finding cheap, easy meals that can fill up the hungriest of bellies. And this Million Dollar Pasta is just the thing! Looking for other hearty pasta dishes? Check out our Chicken Riggies, Chicken Romano or Rigatoni Arrabbiata.
Why You Will Love Million Dollar Pasta
- INEXPENSIVE – Loaded with budget-friendly ingredients, this Million Dollar Pasta is great for feeding a crowd without breaking the bank! Or, if you are just feeding your family, you’ll have leftovers all week!
- KID FRIENDLY – Even the pickiest of eaters won’t turn their nose up at this dish! This is a fuss free meal!
- VERSATILE – This is one of those recipes that you can modify to your liking. See some ideas and inspiration below!
Million Dollar Spaghetti Recipe
This recipe is incredibly easy! See the printable recipe card below for step-by-step instructions. But here is what you’ll need to get started.
- PASTA – We actually used Angel Hair Pasta. But you can certainly use spaghetti noodles (or any other pasta) if you’d like. It needs to be fully cooked and kept warm.
- ITALIAN SAUSAGE – The sauce really gives this dish it’s deep, rich flavor.
- ONION – Chopped. We like using yellow onion for it’s sweeter, milder flavor. But you can use a red onion if you’d like.
- GARLIC – Minced. Please use real, fresh garlic. Not the “Jarlic”.
- SPAGHETTI SAUCE – Or marinara sauce. Any brand that you would prefer.
- BUTTER – We mix the butter in with the noodles. Yum.
- CREAM CHEESE – This is part of our cheesy layer, that really makes it all deliciously gooey and rich.
- RICOTTA CHEESE – You can substitute with Cottage Cheese if you’d like.
- CHEESE – You’ll need parmesan and mozzarella cheese for this dish. We highly recommend using freshly grated cheese for this recipe.
- FRESH PARSLEY – Chopped. Optional for serving.
Can You Make Million Dollar Spaghetti Ahead Of Time?
Yep! You can actually just follow all of the first 11 steps in the recipe card (everything before baking) and let it cool. Then cover tightly with plastic wrap and let it hang out in your refrigerator for up to 24 hours. Then just stick in the the oven when you are ready to bake.
You can also freeze this casserole before baking by wrapping in aluminum foil after it cools. It will be good in your freezer for up to 3 months. Let it thaw overnight in your refrigerator and bake as directed. You can bake from freezing, but it will most likely take a little more time and you may need to cover the top with aluminum foil to prevent the cheese burning.
Leftovers and Reheating
You can store your leftovers in an airtight container in your refrigerator for up to 5 days. Leftover Million Dollar Spaghetti tastes JUST AS GOOD as when it was made! And it reheats just fine in the microwave.
Notes, Variations and FAQs
- MEATLESS VERSION – You can easily make this a vegetarian dish by swapping out the sausage for any plant based meat.
- MEAT SUBSTITUTE – Substitute the sausage for ground beef, ground chicken or ground turkey. Or use any other kinds of sausage like Andouille or Chorizo.
- ADD VEGGIES – Feel free to mix in some vegetables! Mushrooms, spinach, artichokes and/or bell peppers would be great!
- ALFREDO VERSION – Use ground chicken or ground turkey and, instead of a red sauce, use an Alfredo sauce. Yum!
- TEX-MEX VERSION – Add corn, black beans and diced tomatoes to the layers. Top with shredded lettuce and sliced olives just before serving.
- WHAT TO SERVE WITH MILLION DOLLAR SPAGHETTI? – We love to serve this with a simple side salad and some freshly baked garlic bread!
We hope you enjoy with Million Dollar Spaghetti Recipe. We’d love to hear how it turns out for you in the comment section. Drop us a line! Happy eating!
Million Dollar Spaghetti
Ingredients
- 12 ounces angel hair pasta cooked, drained and kept warm
- 1 lb ground Italian sausage
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 2 jars 24 oz each, marinara or spaghetti sauce
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 brick 8 oz, cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 1-1/2 cups shredded Parmesan cheese divided
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese
- chopped fresh parsley optional for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 9x13 baking ban with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
- In a large skillet, add sausage and heat over medium high, stirring frequently until browned. Drain grease and return to pan.
- Add onion and garlic and cook for an additional 5 minutes or until onion is tender and soft.
- Stir in 1 jar sauce. Remove from heat. Set aside.
- Combine warm, cooked pasta and butter.
- Add pasta and remaining jar of pasta sauce together and mix until evenly coated and butter is melted.
- Pour into prepared baking dish and spread evenly.
- In a separate bowl, mix together cream cheese, ricotta cheese, 1 cup Parmesan cheese and mozzarella cheese.
- Mix well and spread on top of the pasta mixture.
- Top with meat and spread evenly. Sprinkle remaining Parmesan on top.
- Bake for about 30 minutes or until bubbly and hot in the center. Remove from oven and let stand for 5 minutes before serving topped with chopped fresh parsley if using.
Nutrition
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