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Sun Dried Tomato Basil Spaghetti Bake

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An easy and delicious vegetarian sun dried tomato basil spaghetti bake recipe that you can make in just one pan in 35 minutes!

Vegetarian sun dried tomato basil spaghetti bake in a Staub baking dish with a serving fork.

Anyone else itching for warm summer days? We can’t wait – which is why we’re celebrating the flavors of summer, tomato and basil, with this recipe: a deliciously creamy sun dried tomato basil spaghetti bake.

This rustic pasta dish is packed with the potent flavor of sun dried tomatoes and brightened with fresh basil and lemon for a taste of summer in every bite. Baked in the oven for easy, hands-free cooking, our sun dried tomato basil pasta comes together in just about 35 minutes, making it the perfect easy weeknight dinner. And 30 minutes of that is in the oven – just like our easy chicken broccoli Alfredo bake.

What To Expect

  • Great for: Easy, hands-off dinners any time of the year.
  • Ready in: 35 minutes
  • Serves: 2 to 3 people
  • Flavor profile: Strong, bright, savory, and herbal.
  • How to make it: Combine all ingredients except the heavy cream, lemon juice, and fresh basil in a baking dish, cover, and bake. Uncover half way through baking. Add the heavy cream, lemon juice, and fresh basil and stir to combine. Top with freshly grated parmesan and serve.

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Why We Love This Recipe

This sun dried tomato basil spaghetti bake is creamy and decadent, yet full of the bright flavors of spring and summer. I find it’s the perfect pasta dish to bridge the gap between seasons.

– Alex

What Is The Point Of A Pasta Bake?

  • The pros: Tossing everything into one dish and popping it in the oven makes for an easy weeknight dinner if you want hands-free cooking and little cleanup.
  • The cons: A spaghetti bake does take a longer time to cook than if you were to boil pasta on the stovetop and make a quick sauce to go with it. It’s also hard to be patient when your whole kitchen smells amazing.

So, the point of a pasta bake like this recipe is to make dinner super easy if you want hands-free cooking and very little cleanup!

Sun-Dried Tomato and Basil Spaghetti Bake Ingredients

  • Sun dried tomatoes in oil – We recommend using julienne-cut sun dried tomatoes in oil, so you don’t have to do any prep work before adding them to the sauce. However, you can use whole sun-dried tomatoes and roughly chop them up, or pulse them a few times in a food processor if you’d prefer smaller chunks.
  • Seasonings – Garlic, dried basil, and dried oregano go into the spaghetti bake before cooking, while fresh basil gets added in afterward for added flavor and a wonderful pop of color.
  • Lemon juice – Fresh squeezed lemon juice brings a much better brightness that lifts up the other flavors in this recipe than bottled lemon juice.
  • Parmesan cheese – For the best flavor and texture, we recommend buying a block of parmesan cheese and freshly grating it over the pasta. You’ll taste the difference, and it’ll make you feel like you’re dining at a fancy Italian restaurant!

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

How To Make Sun Dried Tomato Basil Spaghetti Bake

This is hands-down the best baked spaghetti recipe, because all you have to do is combine the sauce ingredients in a baking dish, add the spaghetti, bake, and stir in a few finishing ingredients at the end. No boiling the pasta ahead of time, no complicated instructions, and just one dirty dish to clean up after dinner. It doesn’t get much easier than that! 

Here’s how to bake sun dried tomato basil spaghetti in the oven:

  1. First, preheat the oven to 450 degrees F and lightly grease a 9×13 baking dish.
  2. Next, add the crushed tomatoes, sun dried tomatoes, water, garlic, dried basil, dried oregano, and salt to the baking dish. Stir gently to combine.
  3. Then, add the spaghetti to the baking dish, making sure to fully submerge it in the sauce and spread it out to fill the entire dish.
  4. Cover the baking dish tightly with foil, then bake for 15 minutes. Then, remove the foil and bake for another 15 minutes, or until the pasta is al dente.
  5. Remove the pasta from the oven and stir in the heavy cream, fresh basil, and a light squeeze of fresh lemon juice.
  6. Finally, top generously with freshly grated parmesan cheese, and serve hot.

Expert Tips

  • Make sure the spaghetti cooks fully – Completely submerge the noodles in a large amount of sauce. Baking the pasta covered tightly with foil allows the sauce to boil while keeping the moisture trapped, which helps to cook the spaghetti without it drying out. Then, you’ll finish baking the pasta without the foil to help reduce the sauce a bit and finish cooking the noodles.
  • Storing – If you have a baking dish with a lid, you can store leftover spaghetti bake right in the dish you made it in. Otherwise, transfer the leftover pasta to an airtight container. Store in the fridge for up to 4 days.
  • Reheating – Reheat single servings of spaghetti bake in the microwave for about 1 to 2 minutes, stirring halfway through. You can partially cover it to help keep some of the moisture in while reheating.

Serving Suggestions

  • Hands off weeknight dinner – Keep dinner easy and serve this pasta with an easy side salad, garlic bread, or Italian bread with dipping oils.
  • Family style – Since this spaghetti bake comes together in one baking dish, you can easily serve it family style at the dinner table if you wish. Just bring the whole baking dish to the table with a pair of tongs and a large spoon, and let everyone help themselves. Serve with garlic parmesan eggplant fries and baked bruschetta dip.
  • Dinner for two with leftovers – Make this easy pasta recipe so you can focus on putting together appetizers and drinks! We recommend enjoying this recipe with burrata toast and a limoncello spritz.
A baking dish full of a vegetarian sun dried tomato basil spaghetti bake.

Vegetarian Spaghetti Bake FAQs

Absolutely! This spaghetti bake recipe gets most of its flavor from the sun dried tomatoes in the sauce. They add a potent tomato flavor and a unique, chunky texture to an otherwise creamy pasta dish.

And if you love sun dried tomatoes in pasta, check out our sun-dried tomato pesto pasta with parmesan and basil.

No, you don’t have to pre cook the pasta for our spaghetti bake recipe. By adding the dry noodles to a large amount of sauce and partially baking it covered with foil, you’re essentially boiling the pasta inside the oven.

To keep baked spaghetti from drying out, don’t pre cook the pasta and make sure to fully submerge the dry noodles in a large amount of sauce. Additionally, keeping the baking dish covered with foil for part of the cooking time will trap moisture and prevent the spaghetti from drying out.

Don’t worry if the spaghetti doesn’t seem cooked when it’s time to remove the foil! It shouldn’t be – because if it was fully cooked, then you would end up overcooking the pasta while trying to reduce the sauce. You bake the spaghetti covered at first to help soften the noodles and let them soak up tons of moisture. But then the noodles will continue to cook as you uncover the dish and allow the sauce to reduce.

If you don’t have a 9×13 baking dish, choose a baking dish that is long enough to fit the dry spaghetti without having to break it, and deep enough to fit all the ingredients with room to stir (at least 2 to 3 inches). But if you don’t own a 9×13 baking dish, we highly recommend you buy one! This standard size dish comes in handy for tons of recipes. If you need a recommendation, we absolutely love our glass OXO baking dish since it’s freezer, oven, and dishwasher safe and comes with a lid for easy food storage.

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Tell us what you think!

We hope you enjoy this recipe! When you try it out, please leave a review and a star rating in the comments below. Happy cooking! – Nicole and Alex

A baking dish full of sun dried tomato basil spaghetti.

Sun Dried Tomato Basil Spaghetti Bake

Nicole & Alex Langdon
An easy and delicious vegetarian sun dried tomato basil spaghetti bake recipe that you can make in just one pan in 35 minutes!
5 from 2 votes
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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Course Dinner, Main Course
Cuisine American, Italian
Servings 3 servings
Calories 566 kcal

Equipment

Ingredients
 
 

  • 14 ounces crushed tomatoes
  • 8.5 ounces julienne cut sun-dried tomatoes in oil
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic
  • ½ teaspoon dried basil
  • ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 pinch salt
  • ½ pound spaghetti dry
  • ¼ ounce fresh basil chopped
  • ¼ cup heavy cream
  • 1 small lemon wedge juiced
  • Parmesan cheese freshly grated

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F and lightly grease a 9×13 baking dish.
  • Add the crushed tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, water, garlic, dried basil, dried oregano, and salt to the baking dish. Stir gently to combine.
    Then, add the dry spaghetti to the baking dish, spreading it out to fill the whole pan and making sure it's fully submerged in the sauce.
  • Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake for 15 minutes. Then, remove the foil and bake for another 15 minutes, or until the pasta is al dente.
  • Finally, stir in the heavy cream, fresh basil, and a light squeeze of lemon juice to taste. Top generously with freshly grated parmesan and serve hot.
One last step:Please consider leaving a review to let us know how it was!

Notes

Sun dried tomatoes: We recommend using julienne-cut sun dried tomatoes in oil, so you don’t have to do any prep work before adding them to the sauce. However, you can use whole sun-dried tomatoes and roughly chop them up, or pulse them a few times in a food processor if you’d prefer smaller chunks.
You can add the whole jar (with the oil) right into this pasta bake, or drain some of the oil (leave at least 1 tablespoon in for flavor!) if you prefer.
Serving suggestions: This baked spaghetti goes great with a side salad, garlic bread, or Italian bread and dipping oils. We love to combine a little bit of extra virgin olive oil in a small bowl with some grated parmesan and red pepper flakes, like you’d often find at an Italian restaurant, and serve fresh bread with it for dipping!
Storing and reheating: If you have a baking dish with a lid, you can store leftover spaghetti bake right in the dish you made it in. Otherwise, transfer the leftover pasta to an airtight container. Store in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Reheat single servings of spaghetti bake in the microwave for about 1 to 2 minutes, stirring halfway through. You can partially cover it to help keep some of the moisture in while reheating.
FAQs: Read our blog post above for detailed answers to some frequently asked questions, like how to keep baked spaghetti from drying out, and what type of dish to use if you don’t own a 9×13.

Nutrition

Serving: 1servingCalories: 566kcalCarbohydrates: 87gProtein: 17gFat: 20gSaturated Fat: 6gPolyunsaturated Fat: 3gMonounsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 22mgSodium: 420mgPotassium: 1858mgFiber: 10gSugar: 9gVitamin A: 1739IUVitamin C: 98mgCalcium: 130mgIron: 5mg
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If you have any questions regarding the information presented in this post, please refer to our Nutrition Disclaimer here.

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90% of Nicole’s thoughts are about food. She’s had a passion for cooking (and eating) for as long as she can remember! Growing up, she started cooking with her mom at a young age, learned family recipes from her Italian grandmother, took every opportunity to make cookies (so many bake sales), and always loved going out to restaurants to try new foods.

Nicole currently works part-time as a marketing professional for OmieLife while also working nonstop on The Candid Cooks. As a former mechanical engineer, Nicole has consistently found herself at the intersection of creativity and logical reasoning. She credits not only her passion for photography, design, and writing, but also her problem-solving nature and desire to learn, as the foundation on which The Candid Cooks was built.

Nicole’s hobbies include anything that gets her moving - mainly hiking, skiing, ice skating, and dancing - as well as reading fantasy novels and scrapbooking. Her favorite food is a big plate of nachos, as long as they’re cheesy enough!

5 from 2 votes (1 rating without comment)

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2 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    This is a simple, amazing recipe! Next time I’ll double the recipe so we can have leftovers – ’cause we there was nothing left after dinner tonight. Having just recently discovered the deliciousness of sun dried tomatoes, I didn’t know if I should drain them or not. I did (the right move) but left a Tablespoon or so of oil in for flavor. Also added some spicy sausage. This pasta is a winner on all levels!

    Reply

    1. Hi Carol, we’re so glad you enjoyed this recipe! That’s a great note on the sun dried tomatoes – we often just dump all the oil in, but it can result in the pasta being a little on the oily side. Adding spicy sausage to this sounds delicious, we will have to try that!

      Reply