This healthy baked pasta with cottage cheese tastes like cozy comfort food with creamy sauce, tender pasta, melty cheese, and plenty of family-friendly flavor. Cottage cheese makes the texture rich and satisfying while keeping this easy dinner simple and a little lighter. You'll get the best baked pasta recipe ideas for busy weeknights when you want something warm without a lot of fuss. Pin this so dinner feels handled before the evening gets loud.
Why this is the best Healthy Baked Pasta with Cottage Cheese
It's a simple recipe. This healthy baked pasta with cottage cheese uses basic ingredients like pasta, marinara sauce, cottage cheese, shredded cheese, and seasonings, so you do not need anything fancy to make it work. Most of the ingredients are easy to keep on hand or grab during a quick grocery trip.
It's very easy. You cook the pasta, stir everything together, spread it in a baking dish, and let the oven do the rest. Once the cheese is melted and bubbly, dinner is ready to scoop and serve.
It tastes amazing. The cottage cheese melts into the sauce and gives the pasta a creamy, rich texture without making the dish feel too heavy. It has all the cozy flavor of a pasta bake while still feeling like a lighter dinner option.
It's great for busy weeknights, meal prep, and family dinners. This healthy baked pasta with cottage cheese can be made ahead, reheated easily, and served with a simple salad or vegetable for a meal that feels filling without a lot of extra work.
What you'll need to make the Healthy Baked Pasta with Cottage Cheese
Equipment
See the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page for all measurements and nutritional information.
Ingredients
- Shells or other pasta shape, measured dry by weight - Medium shells work well because they hold onto the sauce and cheese, but you can use another short pasta shape if that is what you have. Penne, rotini, ziti, or rigatoni would all work. Measure the pasta dry by weight before cooking.
- Spaghetti sauce flavor of your choice - Use one jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce in any flavor you like. Marinara, tomato basil, garlic, or a meat-flavored sauce would all be good choices.
- Cottage cheese low fat - Cottage cheese adds creaminess and protein to the pasta bake. It helps make the dish rich and filling without needing a heavy cream sauce.
- Ground beef 90% lean or more - Use 90% lean ground beef or leaner so the pasta bake is hearty without being greasy. You could also use ground turkey or ground chicken if you prefer.
- Shredded mozzarella cheese - This gives the baked pasta that melty, cheesy top everyone loves. Pre-shredded mozzarella is easy, but freshly shredded will melt even better.
- Egg (beaten) - A beaten egg helps hold the cottage cheese mixture together as the pasta bakes. Make sure it is mixed in well before combining everything.
- Italian seasoning - This adds classic pasta flavor with herbs like basil, oregano, thyme, and rosemary. You can adjust the amount if your spaghetti sauce is already heavily seasoned.
- Garlic powder - Garlic powder adds easy savory flavor without chopping fresh garlic. It blends evenly into the sauce and cheese mixture.
- Onion powder - Onion powder gives the baked pasta a deeper flavor and works well with the garlic powder and Italian seasoning.
- Parmesan cheese finely grated - Finely grated Parmesan adds salty, nutty flavor to the top of the pasta bake. It also helps the cheese layer brown nicely in the oven.
How to make easy Baked Pasta with Cottage Cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375ºF.
- Cook the pasta 2 minutes less than the instructions suggest, then drain but do not rinse.
- Brown the ground beef, breaking it up as it cooks. Drain well and rinse if desired.
- Mix together 1½ cups pasta sauce, cottage cheese, browned ground beef, cooked pasta, 1 cup mozzarella, egg, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder.
- This recipe will fill a very deep 9x9 or a shallow 9x13. Spoon in a little sauce, just enough to cover the bottom.
Pour in the pasta mixture then top with remaining pasta sauce,
remaining mozzarella, and Parmesan cheese. - Bake at 375ºF for 30-50 minutes, depending on the size and shape of the pan. See note below for cooking times. When it's done, the cheese will be melted and the sauce will be bubbly around the edges and it will smell great.
Substitutions & variations
You can make this healthy baked pasta with cottage cheese with almost any short pasta shape you like. Medium shells work well because they hold the sauce and cheese, but penne, rotini, ziti, rigatoni, or bowties will all work too. If you want to make it a little lighter, try whole wheat pasta or a high-protein pasta.
Use any spaghetti sauce your family likes. Marinara, tomato basil, roasted garlic, four cheese, or spicy arrabbiata sauce would all taste good in this cottage cheese pasta bake. If your sauce is already heavily seasoned, you may want to use a little less Italian seasoning.
You can swap the ground beef for ground turkey, ground chicken, Italian sausage, or a plant-based ground meat substitute. If you want to make it meatless, leave out the beef and stir in cooked vegetables like spinach, mushrooms, zucchini, bell peppers, onions, or broccoli.
You can also change the cheese. Mozzarella melts beautifully, but provolone, Monterey Jack, cheddar, or an Italian cheese blend would all work. If your family does not like the texture of cottage cheese, blend it with the egg and seasonings before stirring it into the pasta.
To make this recipe gluten-free, use your favorite gluten-free pasta and check the labels on your spaghetti sauce and seasonings. Cook the pasta just until al dente so it does not get too soft while it bakes.
Storing leftovers
Store leftover healthy baked pasta with cottage cheese in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. You can also cover the baking dish tightly with plastic wrap or aluminum foil if you have a lot left.
Reheat individual portions in the microwave until warmed through. If the pasta seems a little dry, add a spoonful of spaghetti sauce or a splash of water before reheating.
You can also reheat the pasta bake in the oven. Cover it with foil and warm it at 350ºF until hot in the center. Remove the foil for the last few minutes if you want the cheese on top to get melty again.
This recipe can be frozen, but the cottage cheese may change texture a little after thawing. For best results, freeze it in individual portions, thaw overnight in the refrigerator, and reheat gently.
Check out more delicious Pasta recipes
- Garden Pasta
- Asian Pasta Salad
- Buffalo Chicken Pasta Casserole
- One Pot Chicken Parmesan Pasta
- Easy Pasta Primavera with Pesto
- Cucumber Pasta Salad - A Healthy Alternative to Creamy Pasta Salad
Recipe
Healthy Baked Pasta with Cottage Cheese
Equipment
Ingredients
- 8 ounces medium shells or other pasta shape, measured dry by weight
- 1 jar spaghetti sauce flavor of your choice
- 2 cups cottage cheese low fat
- 1 pound ground beef 90% lean or more
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 large egg beaten
- 2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- ¼ cup Parmesan cheese finely grated
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375ºF.
- Cook the pasta 2 minutes less than the instructions suggest, then drain but do not rinse.
- Brown the ground beef, breaking it up as it cooks. Drain well and rinse if desired.
- Mix together 1½ cups pasta sauce, cottage cheese, browned ground beef, cooked pasta, 1 cup mozzarella, egg, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder.
- This recipe will fill a very deep 9x9 or a shallow 9x13. Spoon in a little sauce, just enough to cover the bottom. Pour in the pasta mixture then top with remaining pasta sauce, remaining mozzarella, and Parmesan cheese.
- Bake at 375ºF for 30-50 minutes, depending on the size and shape of the pan. See note below for cooking times. When it's done, the cheese will be melted and the sauce will be bubbly around the edges and it will smell great.
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