This Creamy Baked Spaghetti with White Sauce is a rich comforting dish flavored with Italian sausage, mushrooms and lots of cheese!
Table of Contents
- Baked Spaghetti with White Sauce
- The Ingredients
- Let’s Cook!
- Pointers and Tips
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Serving Suggestions
Okay, I think we all need this from time to time. A rich, creamy and comforting pasta, laden with salty bits of Italian sausage, earthy mushrooms and of course, cheese. Not one, but three types of cheese.
And to make this even more audacious, the dish is baked. And you know that baking equals melty cheese! So be warned, this Baked Spaghetti with White Sauce is sinfully good!
Baked Spaghetti with White Sauce
Because my family are team red sauce, we rarely make white sauce spaghetti at home. But when we do, it has to be flavorful and tasty, not bland. Because to beat their all time favorite Filipino Style Spaghetti or Filipino Lasagna, the white sauce needs to be tasty.
If you guys, loved Cheddar Cheese Chicken Fettucine Alfredo, you have to try this Baked White Spaghetti, too. This time, I did not lack cheese in the fridge.
Not only this is topped with melty mozzarella and ricotta, this baked white spaghetti also has parmesan cheese in the sauce. The flavor of this is kinda’ similar to my White Pizza with Italian Sausage.
The Ingredients
- Cream. I used 35 % fat. For a lighter version, you can use table cream which is 10%.
- Italian Sausage. This imparts a nice, herby flavor ( just a bit) to the dish. You catch salty notes of it here and there and in the pasta!
- Mushrooms. Earthy mushrooms add a filling component to this dish, as well as flavor.
- Parmesan Cheese. This one is in the sauce, and it gives it that salty, cheesy, rich notes!
- Mozzarella Cheese and Ricotta Cheese. These are the final touch on top of the dish. Upon baking the cheese melts into a gooey goodness.
- Butter, Olive Oil and Flour. Together they make the starting ingredients for the roux. This mixture cooked together will allow the cream based sauce to thicken up. See complete ingredients in the recipe card.
Let’s Cook!
- First, cook the pasta until al dente in a lightly salted boiling water. Reserve some pasta water and drain the pasta.
- Cook the Italian sausage in a wide pan, transfer to a dish. Cook the mushrooms in the same pan, transfer to a dish and keep warm.
- In the same pan over low heat, add olive and butter mixture. Cook the garlic and toss for a few seconds then add the flour. Whisk vigorously until lightly browned. Add the cream, and over medium heat, whisk the mixture frequently until it is enough to coat the back of the spoon. Season.
- Turn off heat. Stir in the parmesan. Add the pasta, mushrooms and sausage. Toss everything to combine. You can season last time here. Transfer everything to a baking dish. Top with ricotta, mozzarella and parsley. Bake at 400 F for 15 minutes, or until the cheese has melted and pasta is bubbly.
Pointers and Tips
- You will know that the sauce is thick enough if you lift a spoon from the sauce and a visible layer of the sauce coats the back of the spoon. If you run your finger in it, you will be able to wipe it off.
- Turn off the heat before adding the parmesan. This ensures your sauce does not curdle. You do not need to turn back the heat on after this.
- You can use a large baking dish to bake this white spaghetti. If yours is not large enough, you can use second dish to bake the rest. Just portion toppings as best as you can.
Frequently Asked Questions
Although beef will impart an entirely different flavor, you can substitute it to the Italian sausage in this recipe. You can then add Italian seasoning to attain some flavor.
You can use chicken, shrimp or beef in this recipe. But the Italian sausage imparts a nice herby, salty and spicy flavor to the dish. While you can definitely replace it, the flavor of the dish will change noticeably.
Serving Suggestions
Try serving this pasta with Easy Focaccia Bread, Whole Wheat Focaccia or Rosemary Garlic Bread. For dessert, try something bright and light like Peach Tart, Easy Berry Tart or Easy Berry Cake.
Baked Spaghetti with White Sauce and Sausage
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 lb uncooked spaghetti
- 1 lb Italian Sausage
- 2 cups sliced mushrooms
- 2 tbsp butter
- 4 tbsp olive oil divided
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp flour
- 2 cups whipping cream or table cream for a lighter version
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ tsp ground black pepper
- 1 cup shaved parmesan cheese
- 1 ½ cup reserved pasta water
- 1 ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 3 tsp dried parsley
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente. Reserve 1 ½ cup of the cooking water. Drain and keep warm.
- Preheat oven to 400 F. Heat a large pan and add the Italian sausage. Cook while breaking the sausage apart. The meat will start to render its own oil. Transfer to a plate and keep warm.
- Add 1-2 tbsp of olive oil to the same pan. Add the mushrooms and cook, tossing once or twice, until lightly browned. Transfer to a plate and keep warm.
- Over low heat, heat 2 tbsp of butter and 2 tbsp of olive oil in the same pan. Once the mixture sizzles, add the minced garlic, toss and cook for a few seconds or until aromatic. Add the flour. Stir constantly until the flour turns lightly golden.
- Add the cream and pasta water. Increase heat to medium and cook, stirring frequently until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Season with salt and pepper. Turn off the heat. Add the parmesan cheese. Stir well until the cheese is melted.
- Add the mushrooms, sausage and noodles. Stir until incorporated. You can adjust the seasoning to your taste. Transfer the pasta to a large baking dish.
- Drop the ricotta cheese in dollops over the pasta. Then Sprinkle mozzarella all over the top. Sprinkle dried parlsey. Bake the spaghetti at 400 ℉ for 15 minutes, or until the cheese has melted and the pasta is bubbly.
Notes
- You can choose mild or spicy Italian sausage.
- For a lighter version of this pasta, you can use table cream which is 10% fat.
- You can make this ahead and bake the pasta the next day. After adding the cheese toppings, cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Let the dish rest for 30 minutes at room temperature before baking.
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