We turned our favorite million dollar spaghetti into a low carb meal! This spaghetti squash casserole is cheesy, hearty, and a major family favorite. Just 8 net carbs serving.
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One of the things I love most about this time of year is the whole comfort food situation.
People don’t seem to like casseroles in the dead of summer, but they are 100% totally acceptable the minute it starts to cool off.
Sure, I miss the sunshine and my pool, but did you take a close look at this cheesy spaghetti squash casserole? Doesn’t it look dreamy?
One of my favorite pasta recipes is million dollar spaghetti so I took the idea and swapped out spaghetti squash for traditional pasta.
Total win!
This is probably one of the best spaghetti squash recipes I’ve made yet, but be sure to try out our spaghetti squash carbonara and spaghetti squash alfredo!
Ingredient Notes:
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Spaghetti Squash – A ripe spaghetti squash should be firm with a golden yellow or dark yellow color. Pick one that feels heavier than it looks for the best taste.
Ground Beef – I’m using lean ground beef in this meaty million dollar spaghetti squash casserole! If you want to mix things up feel free to use a different type of meat like ground sausage, chicken, or turkey.
Sugar-Free Marinara – You can use either a homemade marinara or a store bought. We love Rao’s Marinara! It’s perfect for Italian recipes like this spaghetti squash casserole, and we love it for low carb pizza! You’ll mix it with the ground beef to make a meat sauce.
Cream Cheese Mixture – When you make a million dollar casserole you know it’s going to be rich, creamy, and cheesy! You’ll mix together some cream cheese, sour cream, and parsley to make the center layer of the spaghetti squash casserole.
Mozzarella – You’ve got to top this casserole with something, so why not more cheese? Some grated mozzarella is perfect for topping. Parmesan would work too!
We use Thrive Market for a lot of our specialty ingredients and keto snacks or products. Their prices tend to be cheaper than the local stores and I love that you can so easily sort products by diet.
Like Costco, this is a membership site, but we find that it’s more than worth it based on the amount we save over the regular grocery store.
They have monthly or yearly plans. Check it out here.
- It’s not quite the same as real spaghetti, but it’s a very good dupe and it satisfies my pasta cravings!
- The creamy cheesy center is unreal. So rich and adds the perfect decadence to this keto spaghetti!
- I love when I can make a meal the whole family loves and this one is always a hit! It’s a surefire way to get kids to try spaghetti squash.
How To Make Spaghetti Squash:
- Prepare – To start, you’re going to cut a spaghetti squash in half. This probably sounds like an easy task, but if you’ve ever worked with spaghetti squash before you’ll know that you need to bring your muscles and a sharp knife to this game.
Spaghetti squash are HARD on the outside. Dig that knife in (carefully!) and cut all the way around. You can do it, I believe in you. 😉 Finally, scoop out the seeds!
- Bake – Drizzle some olive oil on the inside of the squash, sprinkle with some salt, and place it flesh side down on a prepared rimmed baking sheet. Roast it for about an hour.
- Spaghetti Squash – When the squash is cool enough to handle, use a fork to scrape long strands of squash out.
If you go lengthwise down the squash you’ll get short strands of spaghetti. If you go across the width of the squash, you’ll get long strands. It’s kind of counter-intuitive, but just play with it. It all tastes the same either way.
How To Make Low Carb Meat Sauce:
- Ground Beef – To begin you’ll brown up your ground beef (or whatever type of ground meat you prefer) and then dump in your favorite low carb marina.
I prefer Rao’s and use it almost exclusively when making keto spaghetti sauce. There are only 4g net carbs per 1/2 cup serving. You can find it at most any grocery store, usually up on the top shelf. It’s a little pricey, but it’s seriously the best!
- Cream Cheese Mixture: Let your meat sauce simmer away while you get to work on the million dollar aspect of this recipe: dairy goodness! Add some cream cheese, sour cream, and fresh parsley to a small bowl and stir until well combined. This mixture is so creamy and amazing.
The traditional million dollar spaghetti calls for cottage cheese as well, but it adds a fair amount of carbs so I skipped it. If you have room in your carb allowance, go ahead and add a 1/2 cup of cottage cheese to this mixture. You won’t regret it!
How To Assemble Spaghetti Squash Casserole:
- Assemble – Add half of the spaghetti squash noodles to the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish. Top that off with half of the meat sauce and then spread on all of the cream cheese mixture. Doesn’t that look amazing??
- Top – Next, add the final layers of spaghetti squash and the keto meat sauce and top that all off with some grated mozzarella and a little parsley.
- Finish – Pop this in a hot oven for 20 minutes to allow the cheese to get all warm and melty. I like to serve this with a big side salad topped with my homemade ranch dressing. This cheesy casserole will go well with anything green, like these roasted green beans!
Quick & Easy Spaghetti Squash:
We like baking the spaghetti squash for this recipe since you’ll be using the oven anyways, but there are a couple other methods that are a bit faster! You can prepare the spaghetti squash any way you like for this recipe, and then continue with adding the meat sauce and cream cheese mixture.
- Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash – This is the fastest method! Perfectly tender spaghetti squash in just a few minutes.
- Air Fryer Spaghetti Squash – It tastes similar to roasting spaghetti squash in the oven, but it takes only half the time!
Now that you are a pro at making spaghetti squash, you’ll want to check out some of my other low carb recipes that use it!
- Chicken Spaghetti Squash Casserole
- Roasted Spaghetti Squash with Bacon
- Spaghetti Squash and Meatballs
- Buffalo Chicken Spaghetti Squash
- Garlic Parmesan Spaghetti Squash
FAQs:
You can keep any leftovers stored in the fridge for 3-4 days. You can reheat the spaghetti squash casserole in the oven.
Carefully! If you’ve never cut one before you’ll be surprised at how hard the exterior of the squash can be. You will need a sharp knife. Cut all the way around the spaghetti squash length-wise until it splits in half.
When baked up into this rich, creamy million dollar spaghetti squash casserole each serving is only 8 net grams!
Spaghetti squash has an earthy, sweet flavor that pairs well with many different ingredients. It has more texture than a noodle, but it works well as a replacement in many pasta dishes.
MORE LOW CARB FAVORITES!
- Low Carb Chicken Casserole: Made with cauliflower rice, broccoli, and chicken!
- Zucchini Pizza Boats: Pepperoni on mine please, but you can add any of your favorite toppings!
- Buffalo Chicken Meatballs: We eat these for dinner, but they’re fun for game day too!
- Keto Cabbage Rolls Recipe: None of the work, all of the flavor in these unstuffed cabbage rolls!
- Cheesy Cauliflower Bake: This is a simple low carb side dish made extra easy with an air fryer!
- Keto Fried Zucchini: The perfect low carb appetizer or snack!
Million Dollar Spaghetti Squash Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 spaghetti squash 2-3 pounds
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 pound ground beef
- 24 ounces marinara store bought or homemade
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella
Instructions
For the squash:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a rimmed baking sheet with non-stick spray.
- Cut the spaghetti squash in half length-wise. Scoop out the seeds and discard. Drizzle the inside of the squash with olive oil and sprinkle with salt.
- Place spaghetti squash flesh side down on the prepared baking sheet at bake for 1 hour or until fork tender.
- Use a fork to scrape out long strands of squash, scraping across the width of the squash.
For the meat sauce:
- Brown the ground beef over medium heat in a large skillet.
- Drain the grease and add the marinara to the pan. Cook for 5 minutes over low heat to heat through.
For the cream cheese mixture:
- Add the cream cheese, sour cream, and parsley to a small mixing bowl and stir well to combine.
To assemble:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9×13 baking dish with non-stick spray.
- Place half of the spaghetti squash in the prepared baking dish.
- Top the squash with half of the meat sauce and all of the cream cheese mixture.
- Add the remaining spaghetti squash followed by the remaining meat sauce.
- Sprinkle on the grated mozzarella.
- Bake for 20 minutes or until cheese is melted and casserole is hot.
- Serve immediately.
Susan says
I want to try to make this casserole tonight and was wondering how many cups of the baked spaghetti squash you would use in this recipe.
Thank you.
Karly Campbell says
Hi Susan! I didn’t measure it like this so I’m really not sure.
Edna says
Having to be gluten free and trying to lose weight has its challenges. This recipe sounds delicious. I read where one person substituted yogurt with baking soda for the sour cream. Why do you need the baking soda? Has anyone tried this with fat free or low fat cream cheese? Fat free ricotta for the cottage cheese? I do usually cook spaghetti squash in my Ninja foodi and it works well.
Karly Campbell says
Hi Edna! I’m sure this would work with fat free products, but we don’t use them as they tend to have more carbs and that is our focus. No idea about yogurt and baking soda…never heard of that.
Melissa K says
I made this Million Dollar Spaghetti Squash casserole for my husband last night and he just about finished the entire 9×13 pan – It was delicious! Most of the ingredients in this recipe were things I had on hand – always a win! Popped the spaghetti squash in the oven to cook while I walked the dogs. Put it all in the casserole dish and popped it in the oven for 20 minutes. Healthy, quick, and delicious!
Karly Campbell says
Love to hear that, Melissa! Thanks! 🙂
laura laforge says
Other comments hintedat what I was thinking. This seems a bit like lasagna and not at all in a bad way. I dislike spaghetti squash, but acquired a bunch with other items. This makes spaghetti squash totally tolerable to those who aren’t really fans. I made my own marinara but didn’t substitute anything else. I also warmed the cream cheese and sour cream over very low heat in a skillet. This made it easy to spread over the noodles. Also… people should check out your buffalo chicken recipe if they have a lot of spaghetti squash to use up. Another winner there.
Karly Campbell says
Thanks, Laura! Appreciate it!
Rosamond Crawley says
This recipe is amazing! I made it last night for my hubby and me. It’s so good, we had it again tonight!! This is a winner even if I weren’t counting carbs!!! Definitely in our meal planning lineup!
Ralphie says
Been doing Keto for over 3 years. This is probably our favorite go to. OMGosh. It is GOOD.
Karly Campbell says
Thanks, Ralphie! Love to hear that!
Danielle says
This was amazing! Definitely a keeper. I ended up cooking a second spaghetti squash in my Instant Pot as I tried roasting one for an hour at 400 degrees and it turned to mush. I added mushrooms, onion, and fresh garlic to the meat mixture and added a half cup of Ricotta cheese to the cheese mixture. So satisfyingly good! Thanks for another keto-friendly recipe!
Debra Cartier says
Outstanding! I kicked it up a bit. Added 1/2 onion, 1/2 c of parsley, 3 cloves of garlic (pressed) and 1/2 cup finely chopped red pepper. Put /2 ts1/2 garlic to brown with vegetables and beef; other half in the cheese mixture. OMG. Used Colby Jack cheese (about 1 cup) as I didn’t have mozzarella. Also substituted for the sour cream (yogurt and 1/2 tsp of baking soda). Assembled, popped in oven and voila. Keto Lasagne. thank you!
Karly Campbell says
Sounds delicious!
Jeanene says
Wow! This was amazing! I saved this recipe a few weeks ago and wish I hadn’t waited so long to try it. I added some onions, mushrooms and spinach to have more veggies along with fresh basil and garlic. It was YUMMY! This is definitely going in my rotation!
Terry Stenson says
OMGGGGGGGGGGGGG!!! I book marked this awhile ago and am now wondering what the heck took me so long to make this! I actually took a few bites and had to come in my computer room to send this message to you asap. I made this w/ Rao’s sauce , mushrooms, garlic, basil, oregano, and Italian sausage. Man this is truly amazing and as someone that has been on the keto bandwagon for 2 years now this is exactly what I was missing ( kinda takes the place of lasagna/ or just baked spaghetti.) I really appreciate your hard work and visit this site often. Thank-you!!
Karly Campbell says
Thanks so much, Terry! I’m so glad you gave the recipe a try! 🙂
Heather says
I have made this casserole (well, my variation of it) at least once a month for a couple of years now. It’s a hit with everyone who tries it, including my extremely picky 4-year-old. When I make it, I use 2 spaghetti squashes instead of one (I don’t always use all the squash in the recipe, but I found that using just one squash wasn’t always enough), and I add crushed garlic, chopped onion, basil, oregano, sliced mushrooms, chopped zucchini, and a fresh spinach to the meat and marinara sauce to boost the flavor and nutritional content. I also sprinkle some shredded parmesan (I use the good stuff, Parmigiano-Reggiano) over the top of the mozzarella for a finishing touch. I usually used the fresh mozzarella that comes sliced, so I just put the slices on top rather than having to grate it up. This casserole freezes well, too, if you have leftovers (which you probably won’t)!
Katy says
In reading your review I found that I had also done most of what you had. However, I also used 3-4 small, sweet peppers (no seeds) diced them and sautéed them with the onions and mushrooms. Also added a little cracked red pepper as we always seem to need to kick it up a bit.
Candy says
Wondering if anyone has tried freezing rhis? Seems like it would be freezer friendly and I do love a great make ahead meal.
Christine says
I have made this recipe several times now! The whole family loves it. The only thing I seem to need to do different is I double the meat and marinara sauce. But even with regular spaghetti, I tend to use more sauce than noodles. Definitely a keeper!
Karly Campbell says
Glad to hear that! 🙂
Lisa says
Yum! That looks delicious!
Joan Cortez says
I made this tonight it was absolutely delicious. I thought of some other things to try in it like little pieces of Italian sausage or ricotta cheese.
Nancy Smith says
There’s no seeds in a spaghetti squash
Karly Campbell says
Sure there are! In the center there are quite a few seeds that will need taken out. 🙂
Gizmo Kev says
Fantastic recipe! I substituted a seafood medley of scallops, shrimp and calamari for the ground beef and it was amazing! I will definitely make this again!
Cindy Wilson Gunn says
Holy Sh%$!!!! This casserole is amazing! Just what I was looking for. I added spinach to the creamy cheesy topping. And added parm and a whipped egg to the squash layer. Oh, I added ‘shrooms too because I love them. Thanks for the recipe!!!!!
Harriet walters says
Can I use angel hair pasta instead of squash for this recipe. Thanks
Karly Campbell says
Yes, that should work fine.
Natalie Sullivan says
I made this a few weeks ago and used ground turkey sausage instead of ground beef. It added lots of flavor and was delicious!! I’m going to try making it with ricotta cheese next time. Has anyone tried making with ricotta? If so how did it turn out? Just looking for suggestions
laura says
I made a spaghetti squash lasagna from ruled.me and that came out good. So I’m sure ricotta would taste fine in this.