“Italian Sausage Spaghetti Bake”

Hump Day here!!!…We’re always in a hurry and need dinner to be ready in a flash. You’ve asked for kid-friendly but tasty enough for us adults so my Italian Sausage Spaghetti Bake should do the trick. Spaghetti is every kids favorite but they don’t like too much meat, just lightly coated in sauce. Give them a piece of garlic toast and the kiddos are all set. Seems to me this sounds like an adult dinner too, don’t you think? Easy, simple and delicious is what I’m talking about.

Italian Sausage Spaghetti Bake

Well I’ll let you in on a little secret, Italian Sausage Spaghetti Bake is made with whole grain thin spaghetti but can be made with regular thin spaghetti should you desire. I love pasta and to keep pasta in my diet now and then I have made the switch to whole gran varieties. It limits the blood sugar crash after eating rather than regular pasta. The taste is a little more nutty and slightly more dense but the switch is worth it. I can tell no other difference when used in my recipes. YAHOO! Note whole grain pasta does not come in as many varieties but that’s okay as the most popular ones can be found.

Italian Sausage Spaghetti Bake

To make Italian Sausage Spaghetti Bake, cook one box (13.25 oz) of thin spaghetti according to package directions, drain and rinse with cold water to stop cooking. You can actually cook pasta while sauce is cooking so pasta is slightly cooled and easy to handle. Making the sauce is easy and can be made the day before to save on prep time. Just warm before building this dish.

So brown Italian sausage in a large skillet until almost no pink remains then add in garlic. Stir tomatoes, tomato sauce, water, sugar, and Italian seasoning. Bring to boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 30 minutes. When sauce is ready lay half of spaghetti in bottom of 13×9-inch baking dish. Ladle on half the sauce, then other half of spaghetti and rest of sauce. Sprinkle top with Parmesan cheese and bake in 350 degree oven for about 35 minutes until hot and bubbly. Serve with a green salad and garlic toast.

Italian Sausage Spaghetti Bake

This casserole is renders great leftovers for lunches. Pasta always tastes better the next day and this dish is not exception. My Italian Sausage Spaghetti Bake is a favorite with kid and adults alike. Perfect for any weeknight or potluck and a way to put a different spin on spaghetti and meat sauce. You can also use ground beef or ground turkey but I think the sausage adds more flavor this meat already has seasoning. If you are not a meat eater then omit the sausage. You may have most items in this recipe already in your pantry. So get out your baking dish and go check your pantry. Surprise the family with a new favorite and watch the faces light up. Enjoy!

Italian Sausage Spaghetti Bake

Italian Sausage Spaghetti Bake

1 ½ pounds ground Italian sausage

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 – 15 oz. cans diced tomatoes

2 – 8 oz. can tomato sauce

1/2 cup water

1 ¼ t. granulated sugar

3/4 t. Italian seasoning

1 – 13.25 oz. box thin whole wheat spaghetti

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Brown sausage in a large skillet until almost no pink remains. Add in garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Pour off any excess fat from sausage.

Stir in tomatoes, tomato sauce, water, sugar, and Italian seasoning. Bring to boil then lower heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. Sugar is added to cut the acid taste from the tomatoes.

While sauce simmers, cook spaghetti according to package directions. Do not overcook. Rinse with cold water and drain well.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 13×9-inch baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Lay half of spaghetti in dish. Top spaghetti with half of sauce then rest of spaghetti, topping with rest of sauce. Sprinkle top with Parmesan cheese.

Bake for 35 minutes until hot and bubbly and cheese begins to brown. Serve with fresh green salad and garlic toast.