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This Meatball Casserole contains just FOUR ingredients and comes together fast. A super easy family dinner you can feel good about, coming right up!
Hey! I’m sharing a VERY simple weeknight recipe with you all today. This Meatball Casserole contains just FOUR ingredients – so, you’re already well on your way to getting dinner on the table!
Man, my family just LOVES this! This casserole recipe is pure comfort food and generates zero complaints when I serve it up for dinner. If you have a family – you’ll know that this is a HUGE WIN!
We grab 4 very common ingredients and combine them. Pasta, meatballs, sauce, and cheese. You could throw a little Italian Seasoning in there if you want to!
Do you love easy to prepare meals? You’ll love my One Pan Ham & Cheese Pasta and my Chicken Pot Pie (made in a skillet!)
Ingredients:
- PASTA – any kind of pasta will do. If you are using spaghetti or fettucine, I recommend breaking it up, so it’s easier to scoop out and serve.
- MARINARA SAUCE – choose your favorite! I use a basic tomato sauce, but love mixing it up with different flavors.
- CHEESE – I use both cheddar and mozzarella.
- HOMESTYLE MEATBALLS – use homemade meatballs or storebought, all are good! Beef, turkey, fresh, frozen meatballs, whatever!
How to make this recipe:
COOK THE MEATBALLS. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Place meatballs on an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet coated lightly with nonstick cooking spray. Bake for 15 minutes, then gently turn meatballs over and bake an additional 8 to 10 minutes. They’re cooked when internal temperature reaches at least 175 degrees F (Pics 1-2).
COOK THE PASTA – Meanwhile, cook pasta in boiling water just a few minutes less than called for on the package. Drain well.
ADD THE PASTA SAUCE AND CHEESE. Pour the pasta into a large baking dish/casserole dish. Add the sauce and half of the cheese and mix well (Pics 3-6).
ADD THE MEATBALLS & MORE CHEESE – Add the meatballs to the pasta and add the remaining cheese on top (Pics 7-9).
BAKE uncovered at 350 degrees F, until cheese is melted and the top is bubbly and brown. This should take about 15 to 20 minutes.
DEVOUR.
Kylee’s Notes:
- Since we bake the pasta with the sauce, the pasta doesn’t need to be fully cooked. It will continue cooking in the oven. If the pasta seems too dry, add a little water to the dish.
- Mix up the cheeses! I use cheddar and mozzarella, but any combination will work well (we also enjoy pepper jack in place of cheddar!). I also like to sprinkle Parmesan cheese over the top of the mozzarella.
- Add a little Italian seasoning to your pasta sauce, to bump up the flavor.
- Try different pasta shapes! Rotini, shells, macaroni – anything will work. If you opt for long pasta like fettuccine or spaghetti – break it up into small pieces before cooking.
- What to serve with Meatball Casserole? garlic bread and a caesar salad will be awesome!
- More easy weeknight dinners:
- Homemade Hamburger Helper – a VERY popular weeknight dinner. Simple. Homemade. Delicious!
- Mediterranean Chicken Skillet – you won’t believe how easy and fast it is to cook. Perfect for weeknights, with flavors everyone will enjoy – you’ll be fighting over the leftover sauce!
- Classic Tuna Noodle Casserole – this one will bring you right back to childhood. Budget-friendly and easy to double for a crowd!
- Skillet Mac & Cheese – Comfort food at its finest, this skillet mac & cheese is so easy!
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4 Ingredient Meatball Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 lb dry pasta
- 24 oz marinara sauce
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese
- 1 lb meatballs fresh or frozen
Instructions
- Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Place meatballs on aluminum foil-lined baking sheet coated lightly with nonstick cooking spray. Bake 15 minutes; gently turn meatballs over and bake an additional 8 to 10 minutes until internal temperature reaches at least 175 degrees F.
- Meanwhile, cook pasta in boiling water just a few minutes less than called for on the package. Drain well.
- Pour pasta into a casserole dish (9”x13” pan size), add the sauce and half of the cheese and mix well.
- Add the meatballs on top and add the remaining cheese.
- Bake until cheese is bubbly and brown (about 15 minutes)
- Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly.
- Devour.
Notes
Nutrition
Reader Interactions
Comments
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Kate
I think my youngest would be all in fit Meatball Mondays.
Emmeline
Oh I never thought to use pre-made meatballs (or plantballs ;)) for something like this! Great idea! All shortcuts are good in my book 😉
Leanne - Crumb Top Baking
Those plant-based breakfast sausages and meatballs sound like great products. I can totally see us making this meatball casserole with plant based meatballs. It would still be filling and hearty, and with just 4 ingredients, this would be a winning meal for busy weeknights!
Sandhya Ramakrishnan
I love casseroles like this for weeknight dinners. Being vegetarian, there are many times my boys would ask for meatballs. This sounds like a perfect one for my family to try.
Arpita Patel
Like others, I baked my meatballs. I made mine a little smaller than a tennis ball. I baked them on a cookie rake with a foil-lined cookie sheet underneath for 25 minutes at 375 degrees. Instead of the called for water, I used 1/2 c. water, and 1/2 cup milk and substituted 1 c italian bread crumbs. My family LOVED these!!