Grandma’s Zesty Baked Spaghetti Recipe

It’s National Noodle Day! Sooo random, right? Randomness aside, I’m excited that it’s National Noodle Day because I looooove me some pasta! Seriously…..yum. Today I have teamed up with some amazing foodie bloggers, and we are all bringing you a noodle-icious recipe to inspire your dinner menu! I am going to be sharing with you my Grandma Barbara’s Baked Spaghetti Recipe, but first let’s see what everyone else has cooked up for you . . .

Clean and Scentsible  *  Domestically Speaking  *  Yellow Bliss Road
Setting for Four  *  My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia  *  Yesterday on Tuesday
The Lily Pad Cottage  *  Cupcakes and Crinoline   *  Redhead Can Decorate
Bombshell Bling  *  Town and Country Living  *  Katie’s Cucina

Seriously…..YUM.

Now, on to my grandma’s baked spaghetti recipe.  I love this recipe. It’s tasty, a little bit surprising, and full of happy memories for me of my grandma. It has become a tradition that whenever my mom’s sister and her family are in town for the holidays we get together the day after the holiday (Thanksgiving or Christmas) and eat baked spaghetti and Marie Callendar’s pies at the end of a long day of talking and laughing and playing knockout and catchphrase. I hit the family jackpot, that’s for sure. Both my immediate and extended family are just the BEST! Seriously.

I hope that you love this recipe. It has a little kick of spice that is surprising in a baked spaghetti dish, and it is just warm, filling comfort food. You can also double the sauce and freeze half of it for another day. Then thaw, combine with cooked pasta, top with cheese, and VOILA –– dinner is served! Love it. I hope that you make and love it soon!

I’m going to walk you through the steps and then I will give you the exact recipe below.

Begin by browning the ground beef in a pot over medium high heat. Drain the extra fat from the pan.

Pull out your food processor and chop up the onion. (You will use the food processor again later as well.) Add the onion to the meat and cook over medium high heat until the onions are tender (they should look translucent).

Cook and chop 3-5 strips of bacon. (I use five and I buy the precooked kind. I am both super healthy and super classy.) 😉 Add the chopped bacon to the beef and onions.

Dump the can of tomatoes, the green pepper, and the can of mushrooms (including liquids) into the food processor.

Pulse the mixture together until well chopped and combined.

Pour this mixture into the pan with the meat, onion, and bacon. Add spices and simmer for about 15 minutes. My grandma, mom, and aunts always do the spices “to taste,” but I never know what that means, so I have given you the spice range that I usually use. 1 teaspoon for a little kick, 2 teaspoons for a lot of kick. While the mixture simmers, cook your noodles.

Drain the cooked noodles and add them to the pot. Stir together until the noodles are well coated in the sauce.

Dump the mixture into a 9×13 casserole dish and top with a generous amount of shredded cheddar cheese.

Bake until the cheese is melted and bubbling.

Now here are the official measurements for you. ENJOY!

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Grandma's Zesty Baked Spaghetti

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground beef
• half of an onion
• 3 – 5 slices of bacon
• 28 ounce can whole peeled tomatoes
• green pepper
• small can mushrooms
• 1 – 2 teaspoons cayenne (to taste)
• 1 – 2 teaspoons paprika (to taste)
• 1 – 2 teaspoons salt
• grated cheddar cheese
• 1 lb of spaghetti noodles

Instructions

1. Brown the ground beef in a pot over medium high heat. Drain the fat from the pan.
2. Use a food processor to finely chop up the onion.
3. Add the onion to the meat and cook over medium high heat until the onions are tender (they should look translucent).
4. Cook and chop 3-5 strips of bacon. Add the chopped bacon to the beef and onions.
5. Dump the can of tomatoes, the green pepper, and the can of mushrooms (including liquids) into the food processor.
6. Pulse the mixture together until well chopped and combined.
7. Pour this mixture into the pan with the meat, onion, and bacon.
8. Add the spices to taste and simmer for about 15 minutes. (2 teaspoons is quite spicy, so adjust the measurements accordingly.)
9. As the mixture simmers, cook your noodles. Drain the cooked noodles and add them to the pot.
10. Stir together until the noodles are well coated in the sauce.
11. Dump the noodle and sauce mixture into a 9x13 casserole dish and top with a generous amount of shredded cheddar cheese.
12. Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbling.

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Here’s a fancy schmancy pinnable image for you if you want to remember the simple steps for later:

If you liked this recipe then you are going to love these other recipes:

Creamy Spinach Tomato Tortellini

Mama’s Chicken Fajitas

Turkey Chowder

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Sarah Westover McKenna

Sarah is the scattered creative mind behind Bombshell Bling. A former elementary school teacher and a current stay-at-home mom, she loves developing her creativity through her blog and her jewelry design business, Bombshell Bling Jewelry. Sarah is a lover of all things vintage, colorful, and BLING. She is also a sweets addict with a major obsession with s'mores.

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