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No-Boil Spaghetti and Meatballs with Crescents

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Created by Dionna
Updated Sep 9, 2025
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There’s no meal more universally beloved by kids and grown-ups alike than spaghetti and meatballs. This version comes together so easily with none of your time spent sweating over a huge pot of boiling water, rolling meatballs, or stirring sauce. Prep takes less time than it takes the oven to heat up, and an hour later you’ve got a pasta dinner on the table for the whole family— complete with hot, buttery-garlic crescent rolls. Go ahead and dig in; you can thank us later!

Recipe Ingredients

Here’s what you need to get started.

Spaghetti: Spaghetti is the namesake pasta shape for this dish! We don’t recommend using other shapes as cooking time may differ. The recipe calls for 12 oz dried spaghetti, about 3/4 of a typical 1 lb box. It’s ok to eyeball it.

Frozen Cooked Beef Meatballs: Frozen meatballs come in all sorts of sizes. Our experts tested with traditional dinner-sized and smaller, cocktail-sized meatballs (which can be more kid-friendly). Use 18 ounces of whichever kind you like.

Muir Glen™ Marinara Sauce: Spaghetti and meatballs is all about the sauce, which is why we love Muir Glen™. Use whatever sauce you like best.

Pillsbury™ Original Crescent Rolls: Crescents are brushed with garlicky butter while hot—perfect alongside the finished dish. We recommend Original Crescents for a classic garlic bread feel.

Other Ingredients You’ll Need: Water, Italian seasoning, salt, Parmesan, butter, garlic powder, parsley.

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How to Make No-Boil Spaghetti and Meatballs with Crescents

Here’s how to make this easy no-boil spaghetti! Follow the recipe for more.

1. Start the Spaghetti

Add the water, sauce, seasonings, pasta, and meatballs to the baking dish, and cover tightly with foil. Bake for 40 minutes.

3. Roll the Crescents

Before the spaghetti is done baking, roll up your crescents!

4. Uncover and Bake Again

Remove the foil, stir, and add the cheese. Bake uncovered, along with the crescents, until the pasta is tender, sauce is bubbling, and crescents are golden brown.

5. Serve

Let the spaghetti and meatballs cool slightly while you brush your crescent rolls with the garlic butter. Buon Appetito!

How to Store (and Reheat) No-Boil Spaghetti and Meatballs with Crescents

If you have leftovers, here’s how to store and reheat them.

Refrigerator

Cover casserole dish tightly with foil, or transfer leftovers to an airtight food storage container and store in the fridge for up to 4 days. Refrigerate any leftovers within 2 hours of serving.

Reheating

  • In the Oven: Place spaghetti and meatballs in a baking dish, and cover tightly with foil. Heat in the oven at 350°F for 15 to 20 minutes or until spaghetti and meatballs are hot and meatballs are at least 165°F in the center (use a food thermometer).
  • In the Microwave: Cover with a microwave-safe cover or plate, and heat on medium-high heat for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring halfway through, until steaming.

No-Boil Spaghetti and Meatballs with Crescents

  • Prep Time 10 min
  • Total 1 hr 5 min
  • Ingredients 11
  • Servings 4
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Ingredients

Spaghetti Bake

  • 1 jar (23.5 oz) Muir Glen™ Organic Classic Marinara Pasta Sauce
  • 3 cups water, room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 12 oz (about 3/4 of a box) uncooked spaghetti
  • 1 bag (18 oz) frozen cooked beef meatballs
  • 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Crescents

Instructions

  • Step 
    1

    Heat oven to 400°F. Arrange 2 racks as close to the center of the oven as possible. Grease a 13x9-inch baking dish with cooking spray.

  • Step 
    2

    Add the marinara sauce, water, Italian seasoning, and salt to the baking dish. Stir gently to combine.

  • Step 
    3

    Break the spaghetti noodles in half, and add to the baking dish, pressing them down to ensure they’re fully covered by the liquid. Add the meatballs on top of the pasta.

  • Step 
    4

    Cover the baking dish tightly with foil, and bake for 40 minutes.

  • Step 
    5

    When the spaghetti has baked for about 25 minutes, open the can of crescent rolls. Roll them according to package directions, and place on a baking sheet.

  • Step 
    6

    Remove the baking dish from the oven, and take off the foil. Stir gently, separating any noodles that are stuck together and gently pushing them back under the sauce. Top with Parmesan cheese, and return the baking dish to the oven uncovered, on the upper rack of the oven. Place crescents on the rack below the spaghetti. Bake both the spaghetti and the crescents for 10 to 15 more minutes, until the cheese is melted, the spaghetti sauce is bubbling, and the crescent rolls are golden brown.

  • Step 
    7

    While everything finishes baking, mix together the melted butter, garlic powder, and parsley (if using) in a small bowl.

  • Step 
    8

    Remove the spaghetti and the crescent rolls from the oven. Immediately brush the crescent rolls with the garlic butter mixture.

  • Step 
    9

    Let the spaghetti rest for 5 minutes before serving. Serve the spaghetti with the warm, buttery crescents on the side.

Nutrition

No nutrition information available for this recipe

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