Usually on Thursday night I plan my menus for the week and then do my grocery shopping on Friday. I can spend hours pouring through my food magazines or my collection of cookbooks and really confuse myself with all the choices. Or I can just pull out my collections of menus planned from a year ago or two years ago to make it easier. Some of you are saying “What is she talking about?”. The best way to save money, time, and eat healthier is to take the time to plan your menus for the week. I have done this my entire life. I cannot just go to the store and start pulling things off the shelf and have dinner for a week. I challenge you to give this a try. You will be surprised at how much more organized your life will be. This way you are less likely to pick up fast food or pack up the family and go out for dinner.
Here is one of my favorite go to meals that is quick, good and for us has leftovers for the next day and then some to freeze. It is a new twist on an old favorite spaghetti. Just add a green salad and you have a perfect week night meal. Some steps can be done ahead saving you even more time when you are rushed to get dinner on the table. Peppers can be diced, cheese grated, or just go ahead and make the sauce.
So here you go a little spaghetti south of the border.
Southwest Spaghetti Pie adapted from me
Serves 8
- 8 ounces of thin spaghetti ( I have tried other pasta and it is not the same)
- 1/3 cup of milk
- 1 egg
- 1 lb. ground meat
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 1 medium bell pepper chopped
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 cups tomato sauce
- 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese with jalapeno
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Heat oven to 425 degrees. Put water on to boil and cook pasta according to directions. Drain.
Brown meat with onion, pepper and garlic. Drain if necessary. Add seasonings and stir in tomato sauce. Simmer for about 5 minutes while the pasta is cooking.
Butter a 9 x 13 pyrex dish. Mix well egg and milk in a small bowl. Temper the eggs and milk with some of the warm pasta until the milk and eggs are warm. (Do this to avoid scrambling the eggs in the hot pasta) In large bowl pour cooked pasta and mix with milk and eggs. Pour pasta that has been mixed with milk and egg into buttered pyrex dish. Top with the sauce and add shredded cheeses. Bake at 425 degrees for 10 minutes or until bubbly. Let it stand for 5 minutes before servings. Makes 8 servings.
Two of my blogger friends have posted similar dishes that you might want to check out:
Sarah’s Cucina Bella has a guest blogger from Atlanta MeleCotta- Sundried Tomatoe Pasta Pizza
Barbara from Moveable Feast – Spaghetti Casserole
Happy Cooking,
The Teacher Cooks
The Teacher Cooks 
Oh my goodness! My husband, Dwight, who loves to cook has done a variation on this recipe for the past few years. It’s great. He usually does it in the winter along with a great Emeril recipe for “kicked up” Italian sausage po boy and invites company for dinner. It’s great!
I can’t wait to try this.
And I agree about menu planning. When I don’t plan it certainly shows in our budget, waistlines and time at night.
I love that you’re so organized in your menu planning! This looks amazing and I don’t know if I would share. 😉 Might get ugly at the the dinner table with this pie in front of me. ha!
This recipe looks wonderful. But it looks like you used Bucatini a small hollow shaped pasta, other than a thin spaghetti, I will try it both ways.
No I used thin spaghetti.
Looks fantastic!!
I’ll have to try this one! Looks good & easy! Lord knows I’m crunched for time these days!!
traditional, italian-style spaghetti doesn’t excite me anymore, but this does. all it takes is a bit o’ jalapeno to make my mouth happy. 🙂
Yum!!!!!!!!
I hope we get to make stuff like this in class!
Yummy i love spagetti!! I hope we make this one in class!!
It’s in the oven right now! Can’t wait to try it.
I made this tonight. It’s so delicious!
I didn’t know you could pack spaghetti together like this and make it stay, kind of like a cake. lol, This looks very yummy, I’m definitely going to have to try it!
its more like lasagna, but its spaghetti. it also has a kick to it with the hot flavors.
I had NO idea you could literally make a pie with all those noodles! It kinda reminds me of lasgana.