Thread: Homestyle Spaghetti Pie Recipe - Olive Garden copycat clone

I was watching TV and a commercial for the Olive Garden came on saying something about Spaghetti Pie. Oh, I love Olive Garden, but it is about 25 miles away. I decided to go on pinterest and see if there was a recipe out there. I made this recipe below that I found, but of course I can never follow a recipe exactly as it tells me to..... Soooooooooo....... I will post with variations that can be made to make it easier or harder. One thing I absolutely love about Italian cooking is you can adjust so much of a recipe to your desired taste. It was DELICIOUS!! I don't think it could get much better at Olive Garden- unless you hate to cook, and want a relaxing night out while someone cooks for you. One day I will try it at Olive Garden (hopefully it wasn't a limited time thing) and let you know!



9 inch pie plate (I used glass), greased

6 ounces uncooked spaghetti

1 lb lean ground beef (I added 1 package of Italian sausage too)

1/2 cup finely chopped onion (I added a lot of sweet Walla Walla Onion, just chopped, not fine, but I love onions!)

1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper (I used orange)

*I also added about a tablespoon of freshly chopped garlic

For the sauce:

I used my own homemade sauce which has fresh tomatoes, herbs and seasonings. You could also just use pre-packaged sauce to make it easy- like Prego or Ragu. I mean, if you are going to go the canned route (below), then why not get some thing with flavors already?

But here is what this recipe wanted:

1 cup undrained canned diced tomatoes

1 can (6 oz) tomato paste

1 teaspoon dried oregano

3/4 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon sugar

For the "spaghetti crust"

2 large egg whites, lightly beaten

1 Tablespoon butter, melted

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 cup fat free cottage cheese (8 0z) -- I used 12 oz because the container I had was 12 oz.

Topping:

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

(I also added 1/2 cup freshly grated pamesan, a few fresh basil leaves and a chopped tomato as shown in photo)


Cooking Directions:


1. Cook your spaghetti according to "AL DENTE" instructions. Allow to cool in a strainer for about 20 minutes.

2. Mix your eggs, butter, and grated parmesean cheese and toss in your spaghetti noodles to coat.

3. In a large skillet, cook Italian sausage/ground beef until brown, add onions, bell peppers and garlic if desired.

4. Add sauce ingredients (diced tomatoes, tomato paste, oregano, salt, garlic powder, pepper, sugar to the mixture and cook well, at least half hour on medium heat.

Step 4 variation: Make about 2-3 cups of your own sauce instead, or add half of a 24 oz jar of your favorite sauce.
Step 4 variation: I used sweet onions and orange bell pepper, so no sugar was needed. Don't add sugar until you have tasted your sauce!
***Only add sugar if the sauce is sour/tart flavored.

5. Now it's time to preheat that oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit!

6. In your greased pie plate, line the bottom and sides with your coated noodles. Now, next time I make this pie I will not bring the noodles up so high on the sides. That part got a bit dried out and crusty, so best to bring the noodles about 3/4 of the way up the sides.

7. Line the bottom of the pie with cottage cheese.

8. Top with your beef sauce mixture. Bake uncovered without cheese topping for 20 minutes.

9. Remove from oven. Sprinkle your desired cheese on top. I added the fresh basil and diced tomato which made it not only more delicious, but quite pretty too!

10. Bake an additional 5-10 minutes or until cheese is melted. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Here is a handwritten copy of the recipe provided by my friend Tiffany, who told me she loves this recipe too and has made it for years.
Her note was to never use ground turkey!