Three Cheese Spaghetti Pie
By: Leah Rodrigues
Published: April 21, 2013

Spaghetti pie is a family-approved casserole.  Spaghetti pasta is combined with ground beef, parmesan cheese, ricotta cheese, marinara sauce and egg before being baked in the oven.  The final product is topped with mozzarella cheese to make this dish extra cheesy.  This is a great meal if you already have leftover spaghetti from earlier in the week.
Three Cheese Spaghetti Pie
 
Ingredients:
	6 ounces spaghetti, cooked, drained, rinsed with cold water
	1 large egg, separated
	cup grated Parmesan cheese
	1/2 pound ground beef
	1 1/4 cups spaghetti sauce
	3/4 cup ricotta cheese
	1 teaspoon dried parsley
	1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
Directions:
Hint:
	Before cooking pasta, rub the sides & top of the pot with a little oil. This step will prevent the water from boiling over the pot.
Separate the eggs before they come to room temperature ---
The yolks won't break into the white quite as easily.
Make Ahead:
	Create a hungry-man's pie!
Prepare pie shell as recipe directs, then fill with leftover roast pork for a hearty supper later in the week.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 9-inch pie plate with cooking spray. Combine spaghetti, egg white & Parmesan in a bowl. Press mixture into pie plate to form a pie shell.
Heat a nonstick skillet over medium heat, add beef. Cook stirring frequently, until beef is brown & crumbly, about 5 minutes. Stir in spaghetti sauce, simmer for 5 minutes. Set Aside.
Combine ricotta, egg yolk, parsley & 1/2 cup mozzarella in a medium bowl. Spread mixture into spaghetti pie shell.
Spread meat sauce over cheese mixture, top with remaining mozzarella. Cover pie with foil. Bake for 35 minutes, removing foil during the last 10 minutes of cooking.
Let stand before serving.
Note:
	Many cheeses can be interchanged in cooking so take advantage of weekly sales. For this recipe you can substitute cottage cheese for the Parmesan.