Loaded with a layer of hearty meat sauce over creamy and buttery ricotta spaghetti noodles garnished with fresh chopped herbs and dairy free cheese for an easy dinner recipe the whole family will enjoy. Cut and dish this up like pieces of pie.
10ozgluten free spaghetti noodlesprepared according to box directions
Homemade Pasta Sauce or 2 cups (16 oz) of a Store Bought Jar
1tablespoongrapeseed oilor cooking oil
½sweet onionfinely diced
½lbground beefground turkey works too
15ozfire roasted crushed tomatoescanned
8oztomato saucecanned
1tablespoongranulated sugar
2teaspoondried basil
½teaspoondried oregano
1teaspoongarlic powder
½teaspoonsalt
ground pepperto taste
Noodle Mixture
¼cdairy free ricotta
1largeegg
3tablespoondairy free buttercut into small cubes
¼cdairy free parmesan shredded
optional garnishes-- chopped basil or parsley and more dairy free cheese
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°F and lightly spray a 9-inch deep dish pie plate or baking dish with nonstick spray and set aside.
Prepare the pasta according to box directions.
While the pasta boils and softens, heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.
Add in onion and cook until translucent, then transfer the ground beef to the saucepan and break into small pieces and brown on medium heat.
After the meat has browned, remove the excess oil.
Then add in the remaining sauce ingredients, stir and simmer on low while you prepare the noodle mixture.
Once noodle are softened, drain the water. With gluten free noodles you need to run cold water over the noodles and drain again to remove the excess starch.
Then add the remaining noodle ingredients and toss to coat the noodles well.
Add the noodle mixture evenly to the pie plate. Top with the pasta mixture.
Top with any additional cheese, cover the dish with aluminum foil and transfer to the oven for 20-22 minutes.
Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before cutting into wedges and severing. Top with fresh chopped basil or parsley as desired.
Cover and refrigerate leftovers.
Notes
As we noted in the recipe post-- dairy free ricotta and cheeses are lovely in this recipe but optional. You can easily omit them and still enjoy a wonderful, easy dinner.Also the egg can be omitted if necessary. This helps hold the noodles together. The taste of the dish won't change; however the wedge slices will most likely fall apart as you cut and serve.