Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti is creamy and cheesy, topped with meat sauce and extra bubbly cheese, like a cross between ziti and lasagna!
Pasta bakes are an easy way to make your favorite Italian Recipes that feed a big crowd, and that the kids will love too! This recipe is cheesy, beefy, and satisfies everyone, just like Cheesy Beef Pasta Bake, Baked Spaghetti and Meatballs, and Ravioli Lasagna Bake.
Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti is a hit with many families, and it isn’t hard to see why. With melted cheese, cream cheese, meat, and Homemade Marinara Sauce, and perfect as a make-ahead meal you can freeze, this dish is a perfect meal in a pan and even better served with a nice side salad.
It may seem like there is a lot of meat and cheese going on in this 9×13 pan, but you can probably get 12 portions out of the meal, 9 if you’ve got a lot of hungry people to serve. The flavors are rich enough that a smaller portion is enough to satisfy.
You’ll want to let the Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti cool for about 5-10 minutes when it comes out of the oven. It is easier to cut into perfect squares using this silicone spatula which has a great shape to it. The presentation is fun when cut neatly into squares, but even if you scoop it out with tongs or a spoon, it will taste delicious! Serve Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti with Garlic Bread and a copycat Olive Garden Salad for an easy and complete Italian meal your family will love.
How to Make Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti
Whip up a delectable and satisfying Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti at home with this easy-to-follow recipe. This dish combines the comfort of pasta with the richness of cream cheese and mozzarella. Check it out!
- Step One: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and cook the spaghetti two minutes shy of the package directions. Drain and set aside.
- Step Two: Brown the ground beef, onion, garlic, salt, and pepper in a large skillet. Drain the liquid, then mix in one cup of marinara sauce.
- Step Three: Toss the cooked spaghetti with the remaining 5 cups of marinara sauce, then layer half of it in a 9×13 baking dish. Spread a mixture of softened cream cheese and 2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese on top of the layers of noodles, followed by the remaining pasta/sauce mixture.
- Step Four: Add the meat sauce on top and sprinkle with the remaining cup of mozzarella cheese. Cover and bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, then uncover and bake for an additional 10 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
Try making this pasta bake with Italian sausage instead of ground beef, or lighten it up with ground Italian chicken or turkey sausage, or chunks of grilled chicken breast.
Use chunks of cooked chicken with a creamy Alfredo sauce for a Chicken Alfredo Million Dollar Spaghetti (optional you can also toss in frozen peas). Or leave out the meat altogether and use spinach, lemon juice, and lemon zest with a creamy Alfredo sauce for a vegetarian take.
Add roasted vegetables like zucchini, eggplant, and red onion in addition to or in place of the meat.
Yes, it’s so much fun! Instead of ground beef, use chopped pepperoni, chopped bell peppers, onions, and sliced olives for a combination pizza flavor.
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Key Ingredients in Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti
This Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti recipe brings together simple, easy-to-find ingredients for a mouthwatering meal. The combination of pasta, cheese, and sauce creates a comforting, crowd-pleasing dish. You can easily get all the ingredients from your closest grocery store.
- Spaghetti: The base of this dish, spaghetti noodles provide the perfect texture and shape to hold onto the rich sauce and cheese.
- Ground Beef: Adding a savory, hearty element, lean ground beef can be found in most grocery stores or substituted or combined with ground turkey or ground chicken for a different meat mixture option.
- Marinara Sauce: Homemade Marinara Sauce adds a tangy, slightly sweet flavor that complements creamy cheeses and hearty beef. You can also just use a regular jar of spaghetti sauce in a pinch.
- Cream Cheese: The star ingredient, cream cheese adds a rich, velvety texture and tangy flavor to the dish, making it truly indulgent.
- Mozzarella Cheese: This mild, melty cheese brings the dish together, creating a gooey, stretchy layer on top of the baked spaghetti.
Can Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti Be Made Ahead of Time?
Yes, Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti can be assembled ahead of time and refrigerated for up to 24 hours before baking. Simply follow the recipe up until the baking step, then cover and refrigerate. When you’re ready to bake, add an additional 10-15 minutes of covered baking time to ensure the dish is heated through.
You can even make this Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti in a double quantity so you have one tray to serve and one to freeze. For making ahead the only difference in the directions would be to follow all the steps until it says to put it in the oven. At that point, top with foil and freeze.
To serve, remove it from the freezer the day before you plan on serving so it can defrost in the fridge. If you don’t remember to remove it, you can expect your cook time to be about an hour long at least.
Substitutions in Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti
- Ground Beef Substitution: You can replace the ground beef with ground turkey or chicken for a leaner option.
- Cream Cheese Substitution: For a lighter version, try using Neufchâtel cheese, which has a similar texture and flavor but fewer calories and fat.
- Mozzarella Cheese Substitution: Feel free to swap the mozzarella cheese with another melty cheese like fontina or provolone for a different flavor profile.
Variations on Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti
This recipe is highly customizable, allowing you to add your favorite ingredients or cater to dietary preferences. Try adding sautéed mushrooms, spinach, or bell peppers for a veggie boost. You can also experiment with different types of pasta like penne, rigatoni, or even gluten-free pasta to suit your preferences.
- Veggie-Packed Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti: Add your favorite vegetables, such as sautéed mushrooms, spinach, or bell peppers, for a more colorful and nutritious meal. Sprinkle a bit of parmesan cheese on top for extra flavor!
- Chicken Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti: Swap the ground beef with shredded rotisserie chicken or cooked, diced chicken breast for a lighter, poultry-based version.
- Gluten-Free Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti: Use gluten-free spaghetti or another gluten-free pasta variety to make this dish suitable for those with gluten sensitivities.
- Spicy Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti: Add some heat to the dish with crushed red pepper flakes or diced jalapeños for a spicy kick.
How to Store Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti
- Serve: Do not leave this recipe, which contains meat and dairy, at room temperature for longer than 2 hours.
- Store: Cover with foil or plastic wrap and store Million Dollar Spaghetti in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat individual slices in the microwave for 1-3 minutes.
- Freeze: To freeze Million Dollar Spaghetti, follow the instructions above for freezer storage prior to baking, and keep frozen for up to 3 months. You can also freeze leftover Baked Million Dollar Spaghetti, just allow it to thaw before reheating it in the microwave or oven.
Ingredients
- 1 pound spaghetti , cooked two minutes shy of directions and drained
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 medium onion , chopped
- 2 cloves garlic , minced
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- 6 cups Quick and Easy Marinara Sauce
- 8 ounces cream cheese , softened
- 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- parsley , chopped (optional as a garnish)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large skillet add the beef, onions, garlic, salt and pepper into the pan and cook on high.
- Once browned, turn off the heat, drain the liquid left in the pan and mix in one cup of the marinara sauce.
- Add the cooked spaghetti to the remaining 5 cups of the marinara sauce and toss to combine.
- Mix the cream cheese and 2 cups of mozzarella cheese in a bowl.
- Add half the pasta/sauce to the bottom of a 9 x 13 pan.
- Add the cream cheese mixture and top with the remaining pasta/sauce mixture.
- Add the meat sauce mixture on top of the pasta and top with remaining cup of mozzarella cheese.
- Cover and bake for 30 minutes.
- Uncover and bake for an additional 10 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly
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Nutrition
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Fabulous! Made this for our Sunday dinner. Everyone loved it. I would definitely make this again.
Hello, I don’t have cream cheese nor ricotta. Will it taste alright? And can’t I add chopped red,green, and yellow peppers to the dish? Thanks
It will taste delicious but won’t have that creaminess with out. Enjoy!
Banging, so freakin GooOooood. Thanks again for this recipe. It will be my KEEPER. ???????
Love, love, love! My husband had three helpings and said it’s his new favorite spaghetti! Thanks so much for a delightful dinner!
Yay! That is the best compliment ever! Thank you!
Thank you for the wonderful recipe cannot wait to try will be making tonight I do not have cream cheese can it be made without cream cheese? I do have a little ricotta cheese how much can I substitute same amount? Thank you again so much for the wonderful recipe
Sorry I missed this! Yes, the same amount would be fine. I hope you enjoyed the recipe.
If I make this tonight so I can cook it tomorrow afternoon for a party and just keep it in the fridge, what would you suggest for the cook time?
You might only need to add an additional 10 minutes of cook time if baking right out of the refrigerator. Enjoy!
Can make the million dollar spaghetti and then keep it warm in a crock pot to take to functions?
Sounds perfect!
Sure you can! One caveat though…put the cheese on the top…cook your base, put it in, then melt last cheese on top. If you use an older, or taller pot, add cheese layer every 3 inches of noodles, last on top. Retired chef!
I made this as an extra dish for Christmas dinner. It was amazing! Everyone loved it. We didn’t have any leftover and it will be a new tradition for our Christmas menu. Thank you!
Can’t wait for my recipes!
It’s in the oven now,I added some Basil and Sour Cream to the middle cheese layer and some Black Olives…
And I used Rao’s Marinara…
This is delicious! Especially with the homemade marinara sauce. So much so that this is the only spaghetti my family wants now. I have spoiled them. They said jar sauce doesn’t taste as good now. Thanks for the recipe ?
…never mind…found it! Your system is outstandingly logical!
Glad you found it 🙂 Thanks!
Where is recipe for “quick and easy marinara sauce’?
Here is my recipe for Easy Marinara sauce: https://dinnerthendessert.com/easy-marinara-sauce/
Hope this helps!
My husband and I loved this recipe! I easily cut the recipe in half for a 9×9 baking dish. I used a jar of Newman’s Own Marinara to save time and it was excellent! I served it with garlic bread and a vegetable. We’re having it again this weekend! Thank you so much for this recipe, it’s easy and delicious!
Glad you liked it!!
I made this recipe along with your ‘Quick and Easy Marinara Sauce’ and my family loved it! Simple and delicious! Will definitely make it again. Thank you for the recipe!
I’m so glad you liked it! It’s very delicious and even better with the homemade marinara!
I understand that you can freeze the unbaked pan, but I need to know if you can freeze leftovers is serving size portions? Thanks.
Certainly. You would reheat by thawing and baking for about 15 minutes for best taste.
I mixed the cream cheese and mozzarella with my hand.
I made this last night and it was wonderful. I followed the directions and didn’t change anything. I missed the cream cheese and mozzarella with my hand so it melted perfectly… Thanks Sabrina
So glad you enjoyed! Thanks for the feedback!
This is so delicious. I have made it countless times. I don’t change a thing.
Hi! I’m making the now…can you substitute angel hair noodles for the spaghetti noodles? If so, how long should I cook the angel hair. It’s doesn’t take as long to cook as regular spaghetti noodles. Thank you!!!!
I’d like to know this too
You’ll cook the noodles 2 minutes less than what the package states but the bake time for the oven will stay the same. 🙂 Enjoy!
Is the sodium count accurate.? It is loose for the recipe but the sodium for your cause is way higher.
Hi! The recipe was delicious! Was just curious if you have ever frozen it and if so how well it freezes. Thank you!!
This dish is perfect for freezing!
Awesome! When you freeze dishes do you just wrap with Saran Wrap or foil??
I like to cover this with foil when freezing.
This recipe is FANTASTIC! Not only does my family love it but It’s a crowd favorite for game days or any occasion where I’m asked to bring a dish. Only 2 tiny changes I made: 1) made in slightly larger pan 2) sprinkled 2 cups (instead of 1) of shredded mozzarella on the top to make it extra cheesy.
HI Sabrina–It looks like this one has a lower carb content—I have to be carb conscious because of the severity of my diabetes–I can eat a smaller portion and more salad—I will try this one first–thanks so much–
I’ve made it with Spaghetti Squash before…Very carb friendly …
Making this tonight. Do you think fresh Mozzarella would go well instead of shredded?
Sure 🙂
This is delicious! Next time I’ll try to spread out the cream cheese mixture a bit more because some bites were too cheesy. Will make this again!
Thanks for dropping by to let me know! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Can I use this image if I give credit to your blog?
Can you please email me with your request contact @ dinnerthendessert .com
Thank you
Can I use regular pasta sauce??
Linda
Yes 🙂
Thank you!
Is it OK to use a marinara sauce from the grocery store instead of your recipe – I am lazy! If so, which one would you recommend?
You can use whatever sauce you prefer! No worries 🙂
Rao’s Marinara is the best I’ve tried other than making it from scratch using San Marizano Tomatoes with Basil already in the can…
This is always a big hit! Delicious!
I made this recipe. I is great!!
Me and my kids love this recipe but I mix the noodles, cream cheese, motz, and sauce all together with the noodles. Then you don’t get big chucks of cream cheese.
Omg! So simple and delicious! As others stated, I was worried about the cream cheese, but it turned out to be among my favorite parts of this recipe! It added a creaminess and tang that elevated the flavor. Shared with my family and brought a 1/2 tray to my parents who loved it! Can’t imagine anyone not liking it. I used a premium jar marinara and put a little extra garlic in the meat but outside of that, followed the recipe to a tee. It was perfect and the leftovers kept getting better! Thanks so much for sharing this recipe. Truly worth a million bucks!!!
Thanks, Nancy! I’m so happy to hear how much you all loved it!
Made this tonight & it was delicious! Followed recipe as written with the exception of adding mushrooms. Will definitely be making again. Thanks for sharing!
What did we do wrong? We didn’t have a creamy center. I expected the cream cheese to melt, but it did not. Other than that we like the recipe.
Oh no! You want to make sure that your cream cheese is softened enough before mixing it with the mozzarella. That’ll ensure that it will melt properly. Hope this helps for next time. Glad you still enjoyed it!
This may be the absolute best meal I’ve ever made!! Thank you so much for this awesome recipe! I made it with Italian sausage & added some canned mushrooms. It was super simple to put together but tasted like I had toiled in the kitchen for hours! Thanks again for a true keeper! I can’t wait for leftovers tomorrow!!
You’re welcome, Nerita!
Can this be made up the night before, with everything put in the 9×13 dish and wait to bake until the next day?
Yes 🙂
We made this the other night. The cream cheese layer didn’t melt. Any ideas what we did wrong?
Next time, try making smaller dollops of cream cheese as the layer. Also, enusre that the cream cheese is softened before adding. Hope this helps!
I’ve made this baked spaghetti several times since I found it online omg I can tell you it is beloved by many my family my coworkers especially, I usually make to big lasagna pans of it and freeze one (by the way this freezes very well mine has been in there for a over a month and it comes out after unthawing just as good as the day I baked it). This week for the company Italian themed pitch in I’m making 4 lasagna pans of it because everyone wants this. I can tell you add lib to the recipe by adding mushrooms, green peppers, and Italian sausage to the sauce and I use a few different kinds of cheese parmesan and mild cheddar. This is a robust meal I love it its heaven in a pan, thank you so much for sharing this wonderful recipe you made so many happy!
You’re so welcome!
Just made this recipe for the first time and wow. Grandma likes it…hubby loves it and grandma devoured it. I love how the option of using parsley as a option for flavor really bring it to a mouth watering meal. The smell the colors the texture and the taste are amazing thank you so much. Definitely will make this recipe ahain.
Can I substitute the cream cheese with cottage cheese? If so, How much cottage cheese would you recommend to mix in with mozzarella?
I wouldn’t recommend cottage cheese. If you want to use something other than cream cheese, I would recommend ricotta cheese as a better substitute. Hope this helps!
Trying this tonight! Didn’t have enough spaghetti noodles so substituted for campenelle and penne…had partial boxes of both. Added some shredded parmesan cheese to the mozzarella as well as an egg…like in a lot of lasagna recipes. Turned out fantastic! Really love the addition of cream cheese…might have to add that to my actual lasagna!
My family absolutely loved this! This will become a regular staple as our meal rotation! I made the homemade marinara with it and I think that and the cream cheese is what made this recipe so good!
Easy great recipe that the whole family will love.
I tried this recipe for my Italian themed Christmas dinner – it was soooo wonderful!!! It is very hearty!! Since my guys are huge meat-eaters, I did use 2 pounds of ground beef instead of one and a 6 ounce pack of sliced pepperoni. Spaghetti has never tasted so good!! Thank you so much!!
I made this for the first time for an Italian themed party. It was really good. My family that likes my regular spaghetti said it was great and I should make it more often. I followed the directions exactly as stated. Thanks a million!
Yay,so glad you loved it, thank you for coming back to leave a review! And on Christmas day, I so appreciate it. 🙂
Made this for a fellowship at church and nothing was left over. Very delicious! I used Italian cheese blend and Parmesan cheese mixed together for topping. Broiled for a few minutes before pulling out of oven. Will be making again.
I’m so glad you guys enjoyed it! Thanks for coming back to let me know!
Loved it
This dish is amazing! I have made it so many times and every time it is delicious and full proof. I use jarred sauce, and always split it between two pans and freeze one. I have served this for dinner parties and people just love it! Thank you 🙂
Hello! I want to make this for Christmas to have as a side dish. We’re eating around 2pm so I’d like to make ahead the night before. Should I make and freeze it or can I pre make it and put in the fridge until the next day and if so, how long should it bake for?
You can put it in the refrigerator and then bake the next day. It might only take 15 minutes longer baking coming straight from the fridge. Enjoy!
I use Paul Newman’s Marin ara Sauce for a fasre, easier recipe. I get in and out of the kitchen as fast as I can as a senior caring for a parent with dementi a, and having guardianship of 8 month old and 2 1/2 year old grandsons. Anything that is fast and has some nutritional value works for me!!!!
YES, we keep his pasta sauce on hand too for quick and easy meals when we aren’t cooking from scratch. We love the taste and the ethics behind the company. I’m also with you about fast and nutritional, and you certainly have your hands full, that is definitely a houseful. Good for you for cooking at home, that is a serious commitment to make to your family’s health. <3
What are their ethics at Paul Newman? Love their stuff btw.
Denise, 100 pct of proceeds from all of Paul Newman’s products go to charities. His salad dressings are foosntoo!
Can I used Fideo pasta instead of regular spaghetti. Fideo is cut spaghetti.
Sure 🙂