Pizza Casserole
If you’re looking for an easy crowd-pleasing casserole recipe, look no more. This pizza casserole is packed with flavor and goodness yet is simple and quick to make.
Pizza Casserole Recipe
I love everything about pizza. The warm marinara, the gooey mozzarella cheese, the tangy pepperoni, and all the toppings. And add all that goodness to a pasta dish, and I am in literal heaven. This dish is loaded with flavor and is the ultimate comfort food.
My kids absolutely love when I make this pizza casserole. It has all the fun of pizza, but is much more hearty. I think you’ll love this pizza casserole recipe as much as we do!
The Cowboys’ Rating: 9/10
Every time I make a new recipe, I have my family rate the recipe out of 10. By the time, these recipes make the blog, they’ve been tried and tested by some of my hardest tiny critics!
What Ingredients Are in Pizza Casserole?
- Ground Beef – As always, we use our own homegrown ground beef that is grass-finished and regeneratively raised. It’s delicious, lean and so good. Our ground beef is 90/10 and I never have to drain off a bunch of fat.
- Shell Pasta – For this pizza casserole recipe, I prefer medium shell pasta. I have used penne pasta as well which works too.
- Minced Garlic – I think any Italian dish needs a touch of garlic. Adding it to this recipe adds a bold flavor to this casserole without being too overpowering.
- Onion Powder – Onion powder adds some zest here.
- Italian Seasoning – Italian seasoning is a blend of dried herbs. To really give this pizza casserole some flavor, I add in a full tablespoon of Italian seasoning.
- Spaghetti Sauce – any spaghetti sauce of your choice will do here.
- Mozzarella Cheese – Mozzarella cheese is one of my favorites to add to an Italian dishes. It melts easily and have a rich creamy flavor that compliments the other flavors in the recipe.
- Cheddar Cheese – I like to use both mozzarella and cheddar cheese in this recipe to give more flavor and depth.
- Pepperoni
- Salt & Pepper
Tools You’ll Need
Recipe for Pizza Casserole
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Cook noodles al dente according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
- In a frying pan, add together ground beef, onion powder, minced garlic, Italian seasoning and salt and pepper. Cook until ground beef is completely cooked through.
- When ground beef is cooked through, add in marinara sauce and turn to low heat. Simmer for 3-5 minutes to allow flavors to blend.
- Spray a 9×13″ baking dish with cooking spray then add in ground beef and sauce mixture, noodles, 1/2 cup cheddar cheese and 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese and mix until well incorporated.
- Sprinkle remaining cheddar and mozzarella cheese evenly over the top of the casserole, then layer with pepperoni.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes until pizza casserole is slightly golden brown on top and bubbly.
- Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes before serving.
- Enjoy!
How to Store Pizza Casserole
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Leftovers can easily be reheated in the microwave!
Pizza Casserole Easy Make Ahead Instructions
One of the best things about this recipe is that it can be made ahead of time! I will usually make this casserole in the morning, cover it, and pop it in the fridge for the day. Then when I get home after a busy day, I take it out of the fridge and bake it.
Pizza Casserole
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef lean, 90/10
- 8 oz penne pasta cooked
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 24 oz marinara sauce
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup pepperoni
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Cook noodles al dente according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
- In a frying pan, add together ground beef, onion powder, minced garlic, Italian seasoning and salt and pepper.
- Cook until ground beef is completely cooked through.
- When ground beef is cooked through, add in marinara sauce and turn to low heat. Simmer for 3-5 minutes to allow flavors to blend.
- Spray a 9×13" baking dish with cooking spray then add in ground beef and sauce mixture, noodles, 1/2 cup cheddar cheese and 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese and mix until well incorporated.
- Sprinkle remaining cheddar and mozzarella cheese evenly over the top of the casserole, then layer with pepperoni.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes until pizza casserole is slightly golden brown on top and bubbly.
- Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes before serving.
- Enjoy!
