Description
A comforting Sour Cream Noodle Bake featuring tender egg noodles mixed with a creamy cottage cheese and sour cream blend, layered with a savory ground beef tomato sauce, and topped with melted Colby Jack cheese for a hearty, family-friendly casserole.
Ingredients
Scale
Sauce Mixture
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 small sweet onion, small diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 15 ounce can tomato sauce
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Noodle Mixture
- 12 ounces egg noodles
- 1 ½ cups small curd cottage cheese
- ¾ cup sour cream
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- 8 ounces shredded Colby Jack cheese
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 350°F. Grease a 9×13-inch baking dish with cooking spray and set it aside.
- Cook Ground Beef and Onion: In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the ground beef and diced onion. Break up the beef into crumbles and cook until there is no pink left and the onion has softened, about 8-10 minutes.
- Add Garlic: Stir in the minced garlic and cook for about 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Simmer Sauce: Add the tomato sauce, salt, and pepper to the skillet. Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to low and let it simmer uncovered for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Cook Noodles: Meanwhile, cook the egg noodles according to the package instructions. Drain well once cooked.
- Prepare Noodle Mixture: In a large bowl, combine the cottage cheese, sour cream, salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder. Mix until fully combined. Add the drained noodles and gently stir to coat them in the creamy mixture.
- Assemble Bake: Place half of the noodle mixture evenly in the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Top with half of the meat sauce, then sprinkle half of the shredded Colby Jack cheese over the top. Repeat the layers with the remaining noodles, sauce, and cheese.
- Bake: Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes until everything is heated through and the cheese is melted and bubbly.
- Serve: Remove from the oven and serve immediately while hot.
Notes
- Refer to the FAQ and ingredient list for substitutions and common questions.
- Substitute Colby Jack with mozzarella, cheddar, Swiss, gruyere, or pepper jack cheese for flavor variations.
- Ground sausage, chicken, turkey, or pork can replace beef for different protein options.
- Using canned pasta sauce instead of tomato sauce is fine, but omit extra salt in that case.
- Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
- If cottage cheese is unavailable, ricotta cheese can be used, though texture will be less creamy.
