Spaghetti Stuffed Garlic Bread

5 from 1 vote

It's so easy to create these crispy boats of garlic bread that hold a spaghetti and meat sauce filling, bubbling with melted cheese as it bakes into the ultimate finger food!

Prep Time20

Cook Time25

Total Time45

Course: Appetizer, Dinner

Cuisine: American

Servings: servings

Calories: 1154kcal

Author: Jennifer Fishkind

Ingredients

1 pound loaf of frozen garlic bread thawed
8 ounce (½ of a 1 lb. box) thin spaghetti cooked according to package directions
8 ounce block mozzarella cheese shred
56 ounce can crushed tomatoes
1½ pounds ground beef
1 cup onion small diced
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp garlic minced
1 tbsp italian seasoning
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp black pepper
¼ tsp red pepper flakes

Instructions

In a large skillet, on medium-high heat, place the olive oil. Once it is hot add the onions, garlic, italian seasoning, dried basil, salt, black and red pepper. Cook for 2 minutes.
Once the onions and spices have started to soften, add the ground beef and cook for an additional 5-6 minutes or until the meat is no longer pink. Drain any excess grease from the cooked beef.
Add the crushed tomatoes to the cooked beef and turn the heat to medium-low and simmer the sauce for 15-20 minutes.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place a piece of aluminum foil onto a large baking sheet and set aside.
While the sauce is simmering, remove your garlic bread from the package and allow it to thaw completely. Once thawed, cut your bread in half so that you have 4 equal sized portions. Place the pieces of garlic bread onto the prepared baking sheet garlic/butter side up.
With a sharp knife, carefully cut a slit (following the shape of the bread) about ¼ inch from the sides of the bread. **Make sure you do not go all the way through the bread. You are wanting to create a border to hold the spaghetti and sauce in the bread boat**
With the bottom of a large soup spoon, press down the center part of the garlic bread making sure to leave your ¼ inch border you created with your knife cut. *You should have created a garlic bread boat*
In a large bowl add your, cooked & drained, thin spaghetti noodles with 4 cups of your sauce. Combine them so that all of your spaghetti noodles are coated with sauce.
Divide your sauce coated noodles into 4 equal amounts and fill your garlic bread boats with the spaghetti. Make sure to keep your spaghetti neatly piled onto the garlic bread.
Top each of your spaghetti filled garlic boats with a ¼ of the shredded mozzarella cheese.
Bake for 25 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and lightly golden. **If you want your cheese a little more golden, than you can turn on your broiler for 2-3 minutes or until desired doneness**

Notes

Storage :

To Store: Leftover spaghetti stuffed garlic bread can be stored in a covered container and refrigerated for 1-2 days. Any longer than that and your bread will get soggy.
To Freeze: While I don't recommend freezing this dish, it can be frozen for up to 2 months if you store the components separately. See FAQs below.
To Reheat: Reheat the spaghetti stuffed garlic bread on a baking sheet, in a 350* oven, for 15 minutes or until warmed through.

Tips:

These spaghetti stuffed garlic breads should be served hot.
Using a sturdy bread is essential to this recipe! You need bread that can hold its own underneath the weight of the spaghetti and sauce.
I use spaghetti for this recipe but you can easily use whatever pasta you have in your pantry. Spaghetti holds its shape and fills the garlic bread bowl really nicely. You also want to use pasta that stays in place.
If you add the spaghetti and sauce to the bread boat too early, the sauce will get absorbed by the bread and change the texture. You will lose the crunchy sides of the garlic bread.
If you want to make a 2nd loaf of spaghetti stuffed garlic bread later in the week, I would suggest keeping the bread and spaghetti separate from each other until you are ready to bake them together.

Nutrition