Million Dollar Spaghetti
Million Dollar Spaghetti Dish Guide
Serves 12
1 lb ground chuck (80/20 or 85/15)
1 lb ground Italian sausage
1 medium onion, diced
1 T Italian seasoning
1 T garlic powder
1 lb (16 oz) spaghetti
2 24 oz can crushed tomatoes
12 oz ricotta cheese
8 oz cream cheese
1 egg
½ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese (plus more for garnish)
16 oz mozzarella cheese
Fresh basil (for garnish)
In a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat add the sausage and beef and crumble and cook until the fat has rendered and it is cooked through. Add in the diced onion, garlic powder and Italian seasoning and cook for 5-7 minutes or until onions begin to soften. Add in the crushed tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes.
In the meantime, combine the egg, cream cheese and ricotta in a large bowl and thoroughly mix. Add in the parmesan cheese and stir to combine.
Finally, boil the spaghetti noodles for about 2-3 minutes less than the package directions and drain.
To assemble, add a tiny bit of sauce to the bottom of a 13x9 baking dish. Evenly layer in half the cooked noodles and top with half the cheese mix. Sprinkle over half of the mozzarella and then add another layer of sauce. Then add the remaining noodles followed by the remaining cream cheese mix. Finally add the remaining sauce and top with remaining mozzarella. Unless you are using a deep lasagna pan, you will not be able to use all of the meat sauce.
Bake at 350 F for 30-40 minutes. Check about halfway through and if cheese is browning too fast, cover with aluminum foil. Once cooked, garnish with more freshly grated parmesan and some fresh basil leaves if desired.
Let cool for at least 15 minutes before attempting to cut and consume this million dollar dish!
You should have a couple of servings of meat sauce remaining that will keep for 5 days in the fridge or up to 6 months in the freezer. Other versions of this recipe online call for half the meat sauce and less layering of sauces and cheeses. We love the layered “lasagna-like” final product and the extra meaty sauce in each bite or our version. We hope you do too.
