1/4teaspoon red pepper flakesadd more if you like it spicy
1tablespoon olive oil
2eggs
1cup Parmesan cheese
14ounces pasta sauce
1cupwater
1pound ricotta cheese
3cups shredded Italian blend cheese
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Sauté the ground beef, Italian sausage, and bacon in a pan over medium-high heat.
Season the meat with salt and pepper.
While the meat is cooking, chop onion and mushrooms and add them to the pan.
Add Italian seasoning and red pepper flakes to the pan. Stir to combine.
When the meat has cooked thoroughly, remove it from the pan, and drain excess grease if necessary.
Bring a large pot of salted water to boil.
Add the spaghetti and cook according to package directions.
Reserve 1 cup of pasta water for the casserole once the pasta has finished cooking.
Drain the pasta.
Place cooked spaghetti into a large bowl.
Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 2 beaten eggs, and 1 cup of Parmesan cheese to the spaghetti. Stir well to combine all ingredients.
Place pasta sauce into a separate large bowl with the 1 cup of reserved pasta water. Stir to combine to create a thin sauce.
Ladle just enough sauce to cover the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish.
Add half of the cooked spaghetti to the dish.
Spoon ricotta cheese on top of the spaghetti. The dollops will melt while cooking.
Spoon half of the meat mixture over the ricotta cheese.
Add 1 1/2 cups of shredded Italian blend cheese on top of the meat mixture.
Pour just enough sauce in the dish to cover the meat.
Place the remaining pasta on top.
Place the remaining meat on the pasta.
Sprinkle the remaining Italian cheese on top.
Bake at 350 for 25 minutes, until heated through and the cheese on the top is melted and lightly browned.
Video
Recipe Tips
Cook the spaghetti to al dente. The pasta keeps cooking in the oven, so fully cooked noodles turn soft.
Leave a couple of tablespoons of rendered fat in the pan to cook the onion and mushrooms, then drain off any extra so the casserole does not turn greasy.
Spoon the ricotta in dollops rather than spreading it. The uneven pockets melt into the pasta and give you a creamy bite in every scoop.
Let the casserole rest for a few minutes after baking. The layers firm up slightly and slice more cleanly.