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a baking dish of long spaghetti strands in red tomato sauce with finely chopped mushrooms beneath melted mozzarella and Parmesan, with a loose portion lifted away at one corner
Rachel Kim

Baked Spaghetti

Mushrooms and tomato sauce make this a meatless spaghetti bake with long strands that still lift from the pan in a loose tangle. Break no noodles unless your pot really requires it. Toss the hot pasta with sauce before it goes into the dish so the center gets coated as thoroughly as the top. The cheese sits over the noodles instead of becoming a thick filling layer, and the covered bake keeps exposed strands from turning hard before the middle is hot.
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Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes
Servings: 8
Ingredients Method

Ingredients
  

  • 1 lb dry spaghetti
  • 1 tbsp fine salt for pasta water
  • 12 oz cremini mushrooms finely chopped
  • 1 small yellow onion diced
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 3 garlic cloves minced
  • 1 can crushed tomatoes 28 oz
  • 1 can tomato sauce 15 oz
  • 1 tsp dried basil
  • 1/2 tsp fine salt for sauce
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
  • 8 oz low-moisture mozzarella grated
  • 1/3 cup finely grated Parmesan

Method
 

  1. Heat the oven to 375°F. Cook mushrooms and onion in oil in a wide saucepan for 10 to 12 minutes until their water evaporates. Stir in garlic for 30 seconds.
  2. Add crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, basil, sauce salt and pepper and simmer for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, boil spaghetti in water with the tablespoon salt until 3 minutes short of the package time and drain.
  3. Toss spaghetti thoroughly with the mushroom sauce, using tongs to coat the long strands. Transfer to a deep 9-by-13-inch baking dish.
  4. Scatter mozzarella and Parmesan evenly over the pasta. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes.
  5. Uncover for 8 to 10 minutes until the center reaches 165°F and the top has lightly browned patches. Rest for 10 minutes and lift servings with tongs and a wide spoon.