Spaghetti cake is a cake you can legitimately eat for dinner! This fun and easy pasta will definitely have them asking for seconds.
Why we love this recipe
I don’t know about you, but I have this tendency to make more of things than I actually need. I inherited this from my mother (Mom, you know this is true. I have witnesses. Many witnesses who have happily gotten the leftovers.)
And when I make too much of an actual finished dish, that’s not so bad. It means lunch for the Southern husband later in the week, and he’s not complaining.
But sometimes I make too much of just one particular component, like rice, or sauce, or especially pasta.
And since it was one of my New Year’s Resolutions LAST year to not throw any food away, and since I am on a 15 month run of actually KEEPING this resolution, I’ve gotten pretty dang creative about using up excess ingredients.
And one way I have come up with to use up leftover spaghetti (or linguine, or really any kind of pasta that you make just plain too much of)…Spaghetti Cake! Not a cake that looks like spaghetti…a cake that actually IS spaghetti. Cake you can legitimately eat for dinner! Can I get an Amen?
How to make this recipe
You need a springform pan for this one, so find it or borrow one (my mom has one!) and spray it with cooking spray.
Now you are going to make a lovely mixture of eggs, parmesan and ricotta cheeses and a little oregano and salt and pepper. Give your leftover spaghetti a nice bath in that mixture, and then stir in some cherry tomatoes.
(And while we are at it, if you have leftover veggies that you are looking to find a good home for, toss them in too. Chopped asparagus, peas, a little spinach…they would all be great in this.)
Now scoop out half of this, put it in the bottom of your springform, and lay some slices of mozzarella cheese on top. Think of the mozzarella as the frosting on your spaghetti layer cake.
Put the second half of the spaghetti mixture in the pan, and put the rest of the mozzarella slices on top. Bake it up, and then (here comes the hardest part) you need to let it cool for about 15 minutes to give it the chance to firm up and behave like a proper cake.
When the 15 agonizing minutes are over, pop open the sides of the pan and slide it onto a cake plate and carry it triumphantly into your dining room.
And if you are not like me and actually DON’T make more spaghetti than one family could possibly eat in one sitting, you can go ahead and make spaghetti specifically FOR this recipe…just make sure you cool it off by running cold water on it before you use it.
Last but not least, I recommend some Banana Chocolate Chip Cake for dessert. After all…in for a penny, in for a pound.
Eat cake!!
PrintSpaghetti Cake
Spaghetti cake is a cake you can legitimately eat for dinner! This fun and easy pasta will definitely have them asking for seconds.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 8 slices 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop and Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 1 pound uncooked spaghetti
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 4 eggs, beaten well
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes, cut into quarters
- 1/2 pound mozzarella cheese, cut into thin slices
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 9×3 inch springform pan with cooking spray.
- Cook spaghetti according to package directions. Rinse with cold water, and drain.
- Combine Parmesan cheese, ricotta cheese, oregano, salt, pepper and eggs in a big mixing bowl. Pour in the beaten eggs and toss the whole thing together until the spaghetti is well coated. Stir in the cherry tomatoes.
- Press half the spaghetti mixture in bottom of springform pan. Sprinkle with half the fresh basil, and layer half the mozzarella slices on top. Press remaining spaghetti mixture into pan, sprinkle with remaining basil, and top with remaining cheese.
- Bake for 30 minutes. Let it cool for about 15 minutes, then release and remove the side of the springform pan and place the pie on a serving dish if you like. Serve by cutting it into slices.
Theresa M Murphy says
This looks like something my family would definitely eat! Question for you: you say to stir in half the cherry tomatoes with the eggs and cheeses and spaghetti. What do you do with the rest of the tomatoes?
Hmm – the tomatoes all get mixed in together, so not sure what I was thinking back then in 2012! I’ve spiffed up the recipe – thanks for your eagle eye!
Stephen says
I followed the direction and it is a great dish. My problem is that the center is watery and falls apart. The edges are firm and the spaghetti holds together. I can’t figure what I did wrong. Any explanations?
Stephen says
My wife thinks that the spaghetti may have sat in cold water too long before I made the egg mixture.
Kate says
That’s definitely possible – you need the eggs to cook thoroughly throughout to hold it together, so if the spaghetti was cold, they might not have gotten warm enough to cook all the way through. I hope you’ll give it another try the next time you have some leftover pasta!
Stephen says
I will certainly try it again, it was delicious. To be honest, I never have 1 pound of spaghetti left over, we rarely MAKE more than a pound. I made this from a fresh batch and it made a very large “cake”. Can I cut the recipe down to, maybe even as little as a 1/4 pound? Maybe a Spaghetti pie?
Kate says
I don’t see why not…you could also try it in individual serving ramekins…I’d just cut the cooking time down a bit, maybe to about 20 minutes or so.
ruthie says
I used to put my leftover spaghetti with meat sauce into loaf pan, really weight it down so it’s nice and solid, then refrigerate. The next morning, I slice it, saute it (careflly) in olive oil and serve with a topping of pancetta/bacon and a nice poached egg. I also like to take slices along for a picnic with antipasti, salad and bread. I have to admit that cake never crossed my mind, but we’re on the same track. ;)
Kate says
Wow! I absolutely LOVE this idea…I am going to deliberately make extra spaghetti with meat sauce next time so that I can do this!
ruthie says
Now that I think about it, put that fried spaghetti on some nice bitter greens, frizzled or fresh. Bitter greens and poached eggs are sooo good together. In fact, haven’t you done that before???
Kate says
I have! But really, I could eat a poached egg with just about anything. :)
Sarah says
Cool coincidence, I just blogged about a similar “Mom used to make” recipe, but mine is called Spaghetti Pancake. I have the same problem in that I never have any leftover spaghetti, so I always make it fresh for this recipe.
Pam says
I understand your tendency to make extra. I do it all the time for the same reason. Love your spaghetti dish and your fur buddy is super cute!!!
Suzanne Perazzini says
Unfortunately my Italian husband never leaves any pasta leftovers, no matter how much I cook so this would have to be a specifically made dish. I can think of all sorts of extra ingredients which could vary this to change the look of it. Another great dish.
Leslie says
OMG … my Italian ‘mom’ (the mom of a great friend!) used to make this from leftover pasta regularly. So good!!!
Joanne says
I’m generally pretty good about eating leftovers the plain and boring way. But I’ll SO be making spaghetti specifically for this. I bet leftovers of this will be AWESOME.
Blog is the New Black says
YUM!