Easy As (Spaghetti) Pie

Is anyone else obsessed with Buzzfeed Tasty videos?

They are probably my favorite thing on social media right now, because who does not love a high-speed, crave-worthy recipe? Also, their set is !!! (and I love that they use basic kitchen equipment that we ALL have in our kitchen… yay for accessibility!).

During my daily Instagram/Facebook scroll, I stumbled across a Tasty recipe for rigatoni pie. Rigatoni pasta was cooked and placed lengthwise in a circular pan, smothered in sauce, and baked. To serve, you slice it into wedges like a cake. Basically, it was everything I love – pasta + cake-like foods.

But let’s face it.

I’m lazy.

While I was super intrigued by the rigatoni cake, I was not game for boiling up rigatoni and then standing up each piece one-by-one in a spring-form pan. It takes way too much planning/time/effort… so while it looks AH-mazing, I probably won’t make it anytime soon. But when we had a bunch of cooked bucatini pasta hanging out in the fridge, I knew that we could take rigatoni cake into spaghetti pie!

Spaghetti Pie has all the delicious flavor of the original idea, but is still easy enough to whip up on a weeknight! (AKA my favorite type of recipe)

The pie starts with a simple meat sauce.

You can use your favorite meat sauce recipe, but I am partial to the meat sauce I use for my Faux Lasagna! No matter what recipe you use, you just need to make sure that the sauce is loose enough so the pasta can absorb it during baking.

When the sauce is finished, we can assemble the spaghetti pie!

Add in some cooked bucatini pasta. You can cook it fresh, but this is so much easier + a great way to use up extra pasta laying around.

Toss the pasta + sauce to combine.

Add in some grated mozzarella cheese. Toss everything to combine. Then pour the pasta into a greased springform pan. Using a spatula, press the top of the pasta down – compacting the pasta allows for easy serving later.

Top the pasta with some more mozzarella cheese!

Wrap the bottom of the springform pan with tin foil (to prevent drips) and then pop the springform pan onto a baking sheet (extra drip insurance). Cover the pan with tin foil and pop the pie into a preheated 350 degree oven. Bake for thirty minutes covered, then remove the foil, and bake for an addition 10-15 minutes until golden and bubbly.

Allow the pie to rest in the pan for 10-15 minutes before serving. Then unmold, cut into wedges, and serve alongside a green salad.

YUM.

Super delicious and so easy to put together.

(also, look how pretty the pasta swirls are!)

Another easy weeknight dinner that my crew loves. Plus, it helps clean out the fridge!

So, what’s your go-to weeknight dinner?

oxox,

Catherine

Easy As (Spaghetti) Pie

 

Save Print

Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

45 mins

Total time

1 hour

 

Simply A (RD) Fact: Bucatini's name comes from the Italian word, buco, which means hole!

Serves: 8 servings

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 2 medium-sized onions, chopped
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, minced finely
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 jar of good marinara sauce
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flake
• 12oz bucatini pasta, cooked al dente
• 1 pound part-skim mozzarella, grated
• Cooking spray

Instructions

1. In a large, high-sided skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add in onions and garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes until soft and translucent.
2. Add ground meat to skillet, breaking the meat apart with a spoon. Cook the meat until browned and cooked through, approximately 5-10 minutes.
3. When the meat is cooked, drain the meat/onion mixture in a colander to remove excess grease. Pour the meat mixture back into the skillet over medium-low heat. Pour in the sauce and add the salt, pepper, dried oregano, and red pepper flakes. Stir thoroughly to combine. Simmer sauce over medium-low heat for 5-10 minutes.
4. Add the pasta to the sauce and toss to combine.
5. Add in three-quarters the grated mozzarella cheese to the pasta/meat mixture and stir to combine. Pour the mixture into a greased 9" springform pan that has foil wrapped around the bottom (to prevent drips!). Top with the remaining of the mozzarella cheese. Spray a piece of tin foil and cover the spaghetti pie (cooking spray side down on the pasta). Pop the pan into a baking sheet (more drip prevention) and then preheated 350 degree oven and bake for 30 minutes covered and 10-15 minutes uncovered until the cheese is golden and bubbly.
6. Let the spaghetti pie sit for 10-15 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Nutrition Information

Serving size: 1 serving Calories: 520 calories Fat: 23gm Saturated fat: 10gm Carbohydrates: 43gm Sodium: 857mg Fiber: 3gm Protein: 35gm Cholesterol: 87mg

3.5.3226