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This classic spaghetti pie is a the perfect way to take basic ingredients for spaghetti and present it in a new, delicious form that your family will love! Make the “crust” out of baked spaghetti and then the filling is a cottage cheese, meat and spaghetti sauce mix, topped with melted cheese. You might never make normal spaghetti again.
Pair this with my homemade garlic bread and a Caesar salad and dinner is done!
Spaghetti Pie
Does anything get more 1970’s recipe than putting cottage cheese into pasta? (see my Mom’s lasagna with cottage cheese for a prime, delicious example.) Not much. There are a lot of versions of spaghetti pie, some that you mix all together and bake, others that you flip over to serve. I prefer the classic spaghetti noodle crust that you then fill with your chosen sauce, ground beef and cheese. I find that it works out better texture-wise than mixing everything together. It’s honestly not even 5 minutes more work as well to make it this way.
How to Make Spaghetti Pie
- First, you have to cook your 6 ounces of pasta. If you don’t have a pre-measured box, I’ve shown in the photo what 6 ounces looks like. If you want to be precise, it measures just over 1 inch in diameter. (1 1/2 inches diameter of spaghetti is 8 ounces). Boil the spaghetti until it’s tender.
- Second, you make the pasta crust. Mix the pasta with the eggs and Parmesan. Place it into the bottom and up the sides of a 10-inch deep dish pie plate. You DO need a large pie plate! The classic clear Pyrex 10 inch plates are what this recipe is made for, being a retro recipe.
- Third, make your meat sauce, then ladle it into the pasta crust. So easy! This is a very forgiving recipe to make so don’t worry about being terrible perfect with the crust. It’s honestly so easy.
What Cheese to Use
- While a lot of recipes for spaghetti pie use ricotta, or no cheese at all in the sauce, I prefer the classic texture of cottage cheese in this. Also I didn’t have ricotta and I am trying to cook from what I have, so there is that. You can absolutely use ricotta if you prefer.
- The topping cheese can be a mozzarella, but the cheddar blend that I used added a LOT more cheesy flavor, it’s always my preference to mozzarella which can be rather bland at times.
- The Parmesan that you add into the pasta crust, well, I hate to break it to you but the cheap powdered kind in the jar is the best!
Tips and Tricks
- This dish will freeze well, simply cook it first, then wrap it up and freeze it until later. To cook, wrap it in tinfoil and reheat at a low temperature, around 325°F until the internal temperature reaches 165°F.
- I use one 650-750 ml jar of spaghetti sauce in this recipe. I prefer a 4 cheese sauce for flavor, but the joy of this recipe is that you can use ANY sauce that you love!
- You do need a 10 inch deep dish pie plate to make this!
Happy baking!
Love,
Karlynn
Classic Spaghetti Pie
- Prep Time
- 30 minutes
- Cook Time
- 45 minutes
- Course
- Main Course
- Cuisine
- American
- Servings
- 6
- Calories
- 547
- Author
- Karlynn Johnston
Ingredients
Pasta Pie Crust
- 6 ounces uncooked spaghetti noodles
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 large eggs beaten
- 1/3 cup powdered Parmesan cheese
Meat Spaghetti Sauce Filling
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 cup diced white onion
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- one 650 millilitre jar spaghetti sauce (can be 750 ml)
- 2/3 cup cottage cheese
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese to top
Instructions
Pasta Pie Crust
- Grease or spray a 10 inch deep dish pie plate and set aside.
- Cook the pasta to tender according to the package instruction. Drain and toss with the olive oil in a medium sized bowl.
- Stir in the eggs and Parmesan, coating the pasta well.
- Turn out into the pie plate, and form into a "pie crust", pressing the pasta up the sides of the dish.
Meat Sauce
- Preheat your oven to 350 °F.
- Place the ground beef and onions in a large skillet and fry together until the onion are tender and the ground beef is cooked completely. Drain the grease, then add in the minced garlic. Cook for another 2 minutes.
- Add in the spaghetti sauce and cottage cheese. Stir in the skillet, heating up thoroughly.
- Remove from the heat and pour into the pasta pie crust. If you pour into the middle, it helps push the pasta up the sides, forming a good crust.
- Place into the oven and bake for 30 minutes, until the sauce is bubbling and the pasta has slightly browned on the edges only.( you don't want the pasta to all be crispy).
- Add the cheese on top and return to the oven for another 5-10 minutes until the cheese has melted completely.
- Remove, sprinkle with fresh parsley if you desire, and let sit for 5 minutes before serving. This helps it all set together and isn't so boiling hot!
- Slice and serve like pie!
Recipe Notes
- Calories will vary depending on what sauce and cheese you use.
Nutrition Information
All calories and info are based on a third party calculator and are only an estimate. Actual nutritional info will vary with brands used, your measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
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Angie says
I am not sure how it taste yet, it’s just n the oven now, but it looks so delicious!!! I layered my cottage cheese in the middle instead of mixed with the meat sauce. I like the difference in texture. Cant wait to try it! Thank you for the recipe!
MICHELLE BILODEAU says
Thank you! My kids are going to love this!
Cindy Sharp says
I don’t know ? I really like my mashed potatoes with cream cheese and a little garlic in them ! For my shepard’s pie !