Pizza Casserole
Enjoy a delicious twist on pizza night with this hearty and delicious pizza casserole! Full of tender pasta, seasoned meat, your favorite pizza toppings, and loaded with cheese this is a recipe that your whole family will love! It is the perfect quick, easy and tasty weeknight meal!
For years I’ve meal planned and one night of the week was pizza night. Some weeks it meant popping a frozen pizza in the oven, others it was ordering a pizza for delivery, and others it was a recipe that took the flavors of a pizza and turned them into something a little bit unique and delicious! This pizza casserole is one of those creations.
Here’s what we love about it. Number one, pizza is a family favorite, the flavors are delicious, and so it is always a crowd pleaser that everyone enjoys. Second this easy pizza casserole recipe is chock full of veggies. Not only is there tomato sauce but you’ll also be incorporating mushrooms, peppers, onions and black olives. So you get the taste of pizza with a lot more nutrition added in. And last but not least this easy recipe comes together in no time at all, it is also a great make-ahead freezer friendly option for a dinner recipe that you can get on the table with a quickness on a busy evening.
The great thing about this fun recipe is that you can personalize it any way you’d like! Add in additional pizza toppings that you love (even if you are someone who loves pineapple on your pizza) and leave out the toppings that you don’t!
Ingredient Checklist
Find the exact amounts in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Pasta- I like to use rotini for this recipe but you can use any pasta you’d like. Penne pasta works well too. If you prefer to use an alternative pasta like whole wheat, or lentil pasta that works beautifully.
Ground Beef- You’ll want to use a high quality lean ground beef.
Mini Pepperoni Slices- I like to use mini pepperoni for this recipe because it is nice and bite size. It is nice to get a piece in each bite, if you can’t find mini pepperoni you can use regular size and chop it into quarters before using.
Green Bell Pepper- You want a nice fresh green pepper, you can also use a yellow or red pepper if you prefer their flavor. Bell peppers add a lot of flavor so you can pick your favorite.
Onion- A medium size onion is best, I like to use a yellow or Vidalia onion.
Garlic Powder- Make sure your spices are nice and fresh.
Black Olives- I like to use medium size olives.
Fresh Mushrooms- I use white mushrooms or baby bellas.
Parmesan Cheese – Fresh shredded Parmesan gives you the best results.
Mozzarella Cheese- Fresh shredded mozzarella melts the best but you can use pre shredded to save time.
Pasta Sauce – I like to use traditional marinara sauce but you can use pizza sauce or any tomato sauce that you like.
Olive Oil- You’ll be using this to sauté the veggies, so you just need a little.
Salt & Pepper- Used to season to taste. You’ll want salt for your pasta water and I like to add salt and pepper to the ground beef as it cooks.
Here’s how to make this pizza casserole
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees f and spray a 13×9 inch pan or casserole dish with non-stick cooking spray.
Chop green peppers, mushrooms, and onions into small pieces, slice black olives.
In a large saucepan cook pasta in salted water to al dente according to package directions. Drain and return to pan, pour an entire jar of pasta sauce over the pasta and stir to coat.
Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add in chopped green pepper, onion, and mushrooms. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and saute over medium heat for about 5-10 minutes or until onions are clear and veggies are slightly softened.
Add ground beef and continue cooking over medium heat, stirring frequently brown ground beef until it is completely cooked. Drain to remove any excess fat.
Add ½ of a jar of pasta sauce to the meat mixture and stir until everything is well coated. Add in shredded Parmesan and stir to incorporate.
Next spread the pasta evenly across the bottom of your prepared pan.
Then spread the meat mixture evenly across pasta.
Spread the remaining 1/2 jar of sauce evenly across the meat mixture.
Sprinkle the shredded mozzarella evenly across the top.
If desired spread pepperoni, chopped green peppers, sliced olives and sliced mushrooms across the top of the cheese.
Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until cheese is completely melted.
FAQ and Tips for Success
Can I leave out the veggies? This casserole is a great way to sneak in extra veggies alongside the pizza flavor however if you have picky eaters in your house you can absolutely leave them out. Pick and choose which ones you like and leave the rest!
Can I make this vegetarian? I was a vegetarian for several years and I got really good at altering recipes so I could eat them and this is one of them! Making a vegetarian version is pretty easy and there are several different ways you can do it. The first is to simply omit the meat. Without the ground beef or pepperoni it becomes a delicious vegetarian baked pasta, I suggest if you go this route to double up on the veggies, more mushrooms, peppers and olives help bulk up the casserole beautifully. You can also swap the ground beef for a vegetarian substitute like beyond or impossible meat and omit the pepperoni. I also have used lentils instead of the ground beef to keep it hearty and filling.
Can I use Italian sausage in place of ground beef? Absolutely you can! If you prefer the taste of Italian sausage on pizza then you can swap it out for the ground beef.
Can I make this ahead of time? This easy pizza bake is a perfect make-ahead meal for busy nights, or to make for a meal train, or to make two at a time and pop one in the freezer for another time. If you are just making it a few days in advance you can wrap it in plastic wrap and pop it in the fridge to heat up the next night. If you want to freeze one you can assemble it up to putting the shredded cheese and toppings on top then wrap it in plastic wrap and foil to keep it air tight. When you’re ready to bake take it out of the freezer and place in the fridge for 12 hours or over night then bake at 35o covered in foil for an hour and then uncovered for 15 minutes.
Pizza Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 Box Pasta
- 1 lb Lean Ground Beef
- 1 Cup Mini Pepperoni
- ½ Green Pepper chopped
- ½ Medium Size Onion chopped
- 1 tsp Garlic Powder
- ½ Cup Sliced Black Olives
- ½ Cup Chopped Fresh Mushrooms
- ½ Cup Shredded Parmesan
- 2 Cups Shredded Mozzarella
- 2 Jars Pasta Sauce
- 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
- Salt & Pepper
- Optional- 10-15 Large Pepperoni sliced mushrooms, sliced olives, chopped green peppers for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees f and spray a 13×9 inch pan or casserole dish with non-stick cooking spray.
- Chop green peppers, mushrooms, and onions into small pieces, slice black olives.
- In a large saucepan cook pasta in salted water to al dente according to package directions. Drain and return to pan, pour an entire jar of pasta sauce over the pasta and stir to coat.
- Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add in chopped green pepper, onion, and mushrooms. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and saute over medium heat for about 5-10 minutes or until onions are clear and veggies are slightly softened.
- Add ground beef and continue cooking over medium heat, stirring frequently brown ground beef until it is completely cooked. Drain to remove any excess fat.
- Add ½ of a jar of pasta sauce to the meat mixture and stir until everything is well coated. Add in shredded Parmesan and stir to incorporate.
- Next spread the pasta evenly across the bottom of your prepared pan.
- Then spread the meat mixture evenly across pasta.
- Spread the remaining 1/2 jar of sauce evenly across the meat mixture.
- Sprinkle the shredded mozzarella evenly across the top.
- If desired spread pepperoni, chopped green peppers, sliced olives and sliced mushrooms across the top of the cheese.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until cheese is completely melted.
4 Comments