Easy Pizza Casserole Recipe

This is one of our favorite crowd-pleasing recipes and was inspired by the one my Mom used to make us when I was a kid. It's a delicious family-friendly recipe that your kids are sure to love. This pizza bake recipe is the perfect thing for busy weeknights, or to take to potlucks, game day tailgates, and team dinners before the game.

Looking for more cheesy, easy weeknight dinners? Don't miss our other great recipes like our Copycat Olive Garden Asiago Tortelloni Alfredo or our Fettuccine Alfredo.

Here's What You Need

This cheesy pizza pasta casserole is easy to make. All you need are a few simple ingredients and to follow these step-by-step instructions.

• ground beef - May substitute ground turkey or ground bison.
• Italian seasonings - Use store-bought spices or make your own with our simple homemade Italian Seasoning Recipe. May substitute a pinch of red pepper flakes.
• pizza sauce - May use jarred or homemade sauce.
• tomato sauce - May substitute spaghetti sauce or marinara sauce.
• rotini noodles - May substitute any small pasta shape like elbow macaroni, penne, gemelli, or mostaccioli.
• pepperoni slices - May substitute turkey pepperoni.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

How to Make Pizza Casserole

Preheat oven to 350°F.

1. Sauté.  In a large skillet or sauté pan, sauté onion and garlic in olive oil over medium heat.

2. Brown Meat. Add ground beef, Italian sausage, and seasonings. Cook over medium-high heat until browned, breaking the beef up with a wooden spoon as you go along.
   
   Tasty Tip: Taste the cooked meat and adjust the seasoning. It should be tasty at this point. If it's bland, add another pinch or two of salt.
   
   Optional: Drain the grease from the cooked beef on a plate lined with paper towel.

3. Add Sauce and Simmer. Add pizza sauce and tomato sauce to the cooked meat and simmer for 15 minutes.

4. Boil the Pasta. In the meantime, Cook 1 lb of pasta, in a large pot of boiling water, until it is just al dente, according to the package instructions. Drain and put back into pasta pot.

5. Add Milk to Pasta. Stir milk into cooked pasta.

6. Layer. Put the casserole together by layering the pasta sauce, pasta, and mozzarella cheese in a casserole dish or baking dish that has been prepared with cooking spray.
   
   Create layers of sauce first, then pasta, then mozzarella. The top layer should end with sauce and a layer of cheese. So that all the pasta is covered with sauce and keeps moist.

7. Add Toppings. Now for the best part. It's time to add your favorite toppings like pepperoni slices, green bell pepper, red bell peppers, red pepper flakes, mushrooms, or black olives.

8. Bake. Bake this yummy pizza pasta casserole uncovered at 350°F for 30 minutes until hot and bubbly.

Serving Suggestions

Serve this cheesy pizza casserole with a fresh salad, garlic breadsticks, or some homemade focaccia.

Make Ahead and Freeze

This Pizza Pasta Casserole Recipe can be made ahead of time and frozen until you're ready to eat it.

Make ahead in a freezer-safe casserole dish, or a disposable roasting pan that has been covered in aluminum foil and plastic wrap. Store it in the freezer.

Freeze leftover pizza casserole in an airtight container. Bring up to room temperature before reheating the next day.

How To Reheat A Casserole

Bring the casserole up to room temperature and reheat the oven at 350°F until it is warmed through.

See our post on how to reheat a casserole for more detailed instructions.

There you have it. Making our Easy Pizza Casserole Recipe is as easy as that! We hope you and your whole family enjoy this super simple, super tasty, easy weeknight dinner. Try it and let us know how you like it. We'd love to hear from you!

xo ~ Seanna

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