This baked meatball meal prep with spaghetti squash is a lower carb lunch option! Save time and reduce your dishes by baking the meatballs right in your meal prep containers!
Popping back in with another great meal prep option for my low carb peeps!
A few weeks ago, I shared my EASY method for how to cook spaghetti squash, and between the photos and the video, there was a fair amount of spaghetti squash hanging around.
What does that mean? Spaghetti squash and meatball time! It’s about time I share a spaghetti squash meal prep recipe with you, right?
This baked meatball meal prep is so easy to pull off, especially if you pre-cook your spaghetti squash.
Don’t forget to pin this post to save it for later!
Reasons we love this baked meatball meal prep
- it’s gluten-free and lower in carbs
- the meatballs bake right in the meal prep containers for easy clean up
- it tastes like your favorite pasta dish, but is lightened up
How to make meal prep baked meatballs
Full credit goes to Lindsay from Cotter Crunch for the idea to bake things right in the meal prep container…I saw her do this with eggs for her Anti-Inflammatory Diet Meal Prep Challenge and thought that was such an insanely genius idea!
For this baked meatball meal prep, baking the meatballs in the meal prep container cuts down on the portioning step and also on dishes. I am not mad about this at all!
- Cook your spaghetti squash ahead using my oven or Instant Pot methods.
- Mix together the meatball ingredients and roll into 1.5 tablespoon balls.
- In glass meal prep containers, portion out a bit of marinara sauce, then place 4 meatballs on top, cover with more marinara and cheese, then bake
- Cool slightly, add the spaghetti squash to the containers, and cool completely before refrigerating.
What kind of meal prep containers do I need for this recipe? You need a glass meal prep container that specifies that it is oven safe. Both my 2 Cup Glass Snapware and 2-compartment Glass PrepNaturals containers
are oven safe and worked well for this recipe.
Can I make this without the glass meal prep containers? Yes, bake in a separate dish, then portion out into your containers after it cools.
Can I freeze this recipe? You can definitely freeze it, but I would recommend cooking your spaghetti squash ‘al dente’ since it softens quite a bit after freeze/thawing. It also lets off some water, but I bet after mixing with the marinara you wouldn’t notice!
*important* be sure your meal prep containers have completely cooled before putting the lids on and freezing.
Tips & equipment for meatball & spaghetti squash meal prep
- pictured: these 2-compartment glass meal prep containers
, and my favorite sturdy baking sheet - I used my favorite 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop to form the meatballs
- Looking for more low carb meal prep recipes? Check out this Egg Roll in a Bowl, this Low Carb Meatball Burrito Bowl, and this Low Carb Beef Satay Meal Prep
to form the meatballsRECIPE
Baked Meatball Meal Prep with Spaghetti Squash
Ingredients
Italian Meatballs
- 1 lb lean ground beef (450 g)
- 1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/4 cup shredded parmesan
Meal Prep Bowls
- 2 1/2 cups low carb marinara sauce
- 1 1/4 cup mozzarella (shredded)
- 4 cups cooked spaghetti squash
Instructions
- Heat oven to 375°F.
- Mix together the meatball ingredients, and roll into 1.5 tablespoon balls. They will be soft so be gentle with them.
- Place 1/4 cup of marinara in the bottom of four oven-safe glass meal prep containers. Arrange 4-5 meatballs on top, then cover with 1/4 cup marinara.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes, until meatballs are cooked through. Sprinkle with cheese and return to the oven until cheese is melted, 2-3 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. Portion out the cooked spaghetti squash (3/4 cup per serving).
Storage
- Store in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat in the microwave until steaming hot, and enjoy.
Sarah
Hi! What low carb marinara sauce do you use?
Denise
Hi Sarah! I am not personally low carb but I have heard Rao’s recommended in several groups and this is what I used to calculate the nutritional info.
Laura
Could I use a larger scoop (ice cream scoop size)? How would the cooking time change if I did that. I don’t want to spend money on more cooking tools and want to try to use what I already have. Thanks!
Denise
Hi Laura! I’m sure you could use a larger scoop but I’m not sure how long you’d need to bake them for. You could also just estimate the size, no need for a cookie scoop though it does make things a bit easier.
Angela
What brand are the glass containers with the divider? These look great!
Denise
Hi Angela! They are PrepNaturals from Amazon: https://amzn.to/2VKKx8v