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Broccoli Cheddar Spaghetti Casserole. The classic family pasta turned into an even tastier broccoli cheddar casserole. Think broccoli cheddar soup meets a cheesy spaghetti bake. Made with spaghetti, broccoli, chicken, cottage cheese (yes, it’s traditional!), herbs, and plenty of cheddar. You cook the pasta, toss everything together in one big skillet, then finish it off in the oven. Simple, delicious, and so comforting.
How many of you grew up eating Million Dollar Spaghetti? I think it may be more common in the Midwest, but my mom always made the most basic version. I actually shared it years ago, just after Christmas, when I cooked it for my family.
It’s an old-fashioned style recipe, but we still love it. And the secret ingredient? Cottage cheese. It’s funny because cottage cheese is having such a big moment right now, thanks to its high protein content, but I’ve honestly always loved it—straight from the container.
This casserole is my spin on my mom’s recipe, only with a cozy broccoli cheddar twist. I skipped the marinara, swapped sausage for chicken, and added lots of cheddar. The result? Creamy, cheesy, and so delicious. My mom absolutely loved it the first time I made it—she was so excited about this version!
These are the details
Ingredients
- dry spaghetti
- fresh or frozen broccoli
- cream cheese
- cottage cheese
- milk
- eggs
- parsley
- parmesan cheese
- salted butter
- chicken
- a yellow onion
- thyme, garlic powder, cayenne pepper
- cheddar and monterey jack cheese
Special Tools
Nothing crazy here, a pot for boiling pasta, and a large oven-safe skillet. If you don’t have a large oven-safe skillet, you can bake this in a 9×13-inch casserole dish.
Steps
Step 1: Cook the pasta
Start with the pasta. Boil the spaghetti according to the package directions, but here’s the key—drop the broccoli into the pot during the last 2 minutes of cooking. This quickly steams the broccoli and gets the cooking process started.
Drain off the water, then toss the spaghetti and broccoli back into the hot pot.
Step 2: Make the sauce
Mix the cream cheese into the hot pasta first. Melting it down now ensures you get a creamy sauce instead of a chunky one.
Next, stir in the cottage cheese and milk, then mix in the eggs, parsley, and parmesan. It will feel like a lot of milk, but don’t worry—it creates the creamiest sauce as the casserole bakes.
Pro Tip: Once you add the container of cottage cheese to the pasta, crack the eggs right into the empty container and whisk them up. One less bowl to wash—I’m always looking for little hacks like that!
Step 3: Cook the chicken
Grab an oven-safe skillet and cook the chicken with onions, thyme, paprika, garlic powder, cayenne, plus a good pinch of salt and pepper.
When the chicken is cooked through, add the pasta to the deep dish skillet and give everything a gentle stir. It doesn’t need to be fully mixed—just enough. Sprinkle the cheese on top.
Step 4: Bake
If needed, transfer everything to a baking dish, but ideally, you can just slide the skillet right into the oven.
Bake until the cheese has melted and the sauce is bubbling and hot.
To serve
I like to finish with a sprinkle of fresh thyme, but parsley works too. Then serve warm.
This one was such a hit with my family—easy, cozy, and the perfect comforting pasta bake for fall and winter nights.
Looking for other easy family dinner recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Broccoli Cheddar Chicken and Rice Casserole
Garlic Butter Creamed Corn Chicken
Cheesy Zucchini Chicken and Rice Bake
One Skillet Street Corn Chicken Enchilada Bake
Lastly, if you make this Broccoli Cheddar Spaghetti Casserole, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Broccoli Cheddar Spaghetti Casserole.
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 656 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 pound dry spaghetti
- 3 cups broccoli florets
- 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
- 2 cups whole milk cottage cheese
- 1 1/2 cups milk
- 4 eggs, beaten
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 pound boneless chicken breasts, cut into cubes
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- salt and black pepper
- 2 1/2 cups shredded cheddar jack cheese (or use 1 1/2 cups cheddar and 1 cup monterey jack)
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. If you don't have a deep dish oven-safe skillet, butter a large casserole dish. 2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Boil the pasta until al dente, according to package directions. During the last 2 minutes of cooking, add the broccoli. Drain, add the pasta and broccoli back into the pot. 3. Add the cream cheese, mixing it into the pasta and allowing it to melt. Now add cottage cheese, milk, eggs, parsley, and parmesan. Mix it all together until creamy.4. Meanwhile, in a large oven-safe skillet, melt the butter with the chicken, onion, thyme, paprika, garlic powder, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Cook until golden and the butter is toasted, 5-8 minutes.5. Mix the pasta, broccoli, and cream sauce into the chicken. Only a gentle mix is needed! Top with both cheeses. Bake 20 minutes, until the cheese is melted and beginning to brown. Serve warm with additional thyme and fresh basil.
This post was originally published on September 15, 2025
This recipe needed a lot of changes to even remotely work. Disappointing.
Hi Diane,
Thanks for trying this dish, I’m sorry to hear that it didn’t workout for you. If there is anything that I can help with, please let me know!
Way too much dairy for what this was…oof. Probably could have cut it in half & it would have been fine. Made everything so goopy and just gross. I’ve noticed that pretty much every recipe has cheese in it…would you consider making some without so much cheese?
Hi Nadene,
Very sorry to hear this, thanks so much for sharing your feedback. Thanks for trying the recipe!
Very delicious – we will do again. My plan is to cut milk entirely and double cream cheese. Ours turned out too wet and milky
Thanks so much for sharing this feedback, so glad to hear you will make this again! Have a great Wednesday!
This was so good as is! Didn’t make any changes other than using lower fat cream cheese and 2% cottage cheese. It made so much we were able to freeze the rest for lunches in the future!
Hey Brenna,
Thanks so much! I love to hear this recipe turned out for you, thanks for making it! Happy Wednesday!
How do you cook the chicken, onion etc? Stove, oven? It doesn’t say. Sounds good otherwise.
Hi Liz,
I like to cook the chicken on the stove top. I hope you love this dish, please let me know if you give it a try!
Can I use ricotta cheese instead of cottage cheese?
Hey Susan,
Totally, that will work nicely for you! I hope you love this recipe, let me know if you give it a try!
Good Culture Cottage Cheese is by FAR the best on the market. Not at all like any other cottage cheese I’ve had – a nice tang to it. Any of you asking about ricotta, you might give the Good Culture version a try. Tieghan, this recipe sounds delicious, I can’t wait to try it and will let you know how it goes. Love, love, love your recipes!
Thanks so much, Sandy:) I agree with you, Good Culture is delicious, thanks for sharing this suggestion! I hope you love this dish! xx
This was soooo thick. If I ever made this again I’d remove the cream cheese and most of the cheese on top. Would double the broccoli and probably add more chicken. Potentially use bone broth as part of the sauce. It really was pretty unappetizing. I think there are other recipes out there that are similar and wouldn’t need to be changed.
Hi Jenna,
Very sorry to hear this. Thanks for trying the dish and sharing your feedback. If there is anything that I can help with, please let me know!
Pro tip! Buy any whole roast chicken and shred it. Sauté the onions with the spices and once onions are tender drop in the shredded chicken, add to pasta and go from there. Cuts time waaaaay down!
Such a great idea, Winfrey! Thanks for sharing!
Onion not listed. In recipe. It sounds delish!
Thanks so much, Sharon! It’s one yellow onion. I hope you love this dish!
Can you replace cottage cheese with ricotta cheese?
Thanks!
Hi Wendy,
Yes, that would work nicely for you! Please let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it!
I like my broccoli on the crunchy side. Would it help to skip adding with the pasta?
Hi Pat,
Sure, that should work nicely for you! I hope you enjoy this dish! xx
Could I make this vegetarian by adding beans? Like butter beans?
Hey Michelle,
Sure, that sounds like a great idea! I’ve never tried it, but you certainly don’t have to add the chicken if you want to keep this vegetarian. Let me know how the dish turns out!
This sounds so yummy but I just don’t think I can make myself use cottage cheese. Do you think there’s any way I can still make the recipe work without it?
Thanks so much, Allison! Yes, you could use an equal amount of ricotta, that will work nicely for you! Have a great day!
Sounds delicious! Do you cook the chicken on the stovetop or in the oven?
Thanks so much, Megan! The chicken is cooked on the stove top for this recipe. Please let me know if you give it a try!
Can I use ricotta cheese instead of cottage cheese
Hey Patricia,
Totally, that would be a great idea for this dish! Let me know if you give it a try!