The kitchen is my most favorite place to be and the only thing that makes it better is if I’m in the kitchen with my family and friends. The other day I had the opportunity to get in the kitchen with my Mom. We don’t do it often enough and it felt so good to be back in the kitchen where I learned to cook. To say that my mother inspired my love of food would be an understatement. I’m sure those Saturday mornings filled with rubbery scrambled egg breakfasts crafted by my 8 year old hands weren’t the best meals she had ever had, but they sure were special for me. Growing up, Mom cooked three meals a day; partly because she loved it, and partly because we couldn’t afford to go out to eat much. Her necessity became her passion and her passion became mine. (Thanks, Mom!)
This recipe is a family favorite that is sure to be a hit with your family too. The great thing about this casserole is its versatility. If you put it on a pizza, you can put it in this casserole. We kept it pretty simple this time, but I can imagine adding mushrooms, black olives, green peppers, artichokes, the list goes on and on.
And don’t let the photo fool you, this recipe makes a lot, so prepare to feed a crowd!  It will absolutely fill a 9×13 pan.  We sometimes break it up into a couple smaller casseroles.  🙂
I hope y’all enjoy!
Ingredients
- 1 (12-ounce) package bowtie pasta
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound ground Italian sausage
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 1 teaspoon chopped garlic (we used the jarred kind already prepared)
- 14 to 16 oz jarred pizza sauce
- 1 (3.5-ounce) pepperoni
- 1 (10.7-ounce) can condensed cheddar cheese soup
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 (8-ounce) package (2 cups) shredded Italian cheese blend
- 1 (8-ounce) package (2 cups) shredded mozzarella cheese
Directions
- Cook pasta in large pot using package directions. Drain and return to pot.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Meanwhile, cook ground beef, sausage, onions, and garlic in a large skillet until no longer pink. Drain grease and return to pan.
- Stir pizza sauce, pepperoni, cheese soup, salt, and Italian cheese blend into meat mixture.
- Add meat mixture to pot with cooked pasta and combine.
- Pour into greased 9 x 13″ casserole dish.
- Top with mozzarella cheese.
- Bake 20 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly.
Recipe Card
Weeknight Bites: Pizza Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 (12-ounce) package bowtie pasta
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound ground Italian sausage
- 1 small onion chopped
- 1 teaspoon chopped garlic we used the jarred kind already prepared
- 14 to 16 oz jarred pizza sauce
- 1 (3.5-ounce) pepperoni
- 1 (10.7-ounce) can condensed cheddar cheese soup
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 8-ounce package (2 cups) shredded Italian cheese blend
- 1 8-ounce package (2 cups) shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Cook pasta in large pot using package directions. Drain and return to pot.
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Meanwhile, cook ground beef, sausage, onions, and garlic in a large skillet until no longer pink. Drain grease and return to pan.
- Stir in pizza sauce, pepperoni, cheese soup, salt, and Italian cheese blend into meat mixture.
- Add meat mixture to pot with cooked pasta and combine.
- Pour into greased 9 x 13″ casserole dish.
- Top with mozzarella cheese.
- Bake 20 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly.
Please note:
If nutritional values are provided, they are an estimate and will vary depending on the brands used. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, I recommend grabbing your favorite brands and plugging those ingredients into an online nutritional calculator.
Can a portion be frozen?
I don’t see why not!
Can you think of a cleaner substitution for the canned cheese soup?
Thanks!
I suppose you could just leave it out or maybe swap it for some sour cream.
There is only my husband and me. Will you send me the recipe for a smaller quantity?
This recipe halves pretty easily.
How many does this serve?
You can probably serve about 6 depending on the serving size.
making this tonight but modifying it a little by adding Canadian bacon and regular bacon making it a meat lovers pizza casserole!
Sounds amazing! Hope it turned out great!
I made this for dinner tonight. It tasted even better than I thought it would! Great flavor! My picky kids loved it, too!
Wonderful, Amanda!
Serving this at my house tonight. Thanks!
I’m so trying this is it fattening?
wow..sounds delicious! My husband has to be gluten free so I will now be on a search for GF cheddar cheese soup so he can enjoy it too!
O. M .G . Made this today and my precious little girls came home and
they eat just like three little pigs.It was very easy and didn’t take long at all.
I love this recipe and I’m glad y’all do too! Comforting, filling, and easy! Those are things that are super important in my house!
THIS LOOKS SOOOO GOOD. CAN’T WAIT TO MAKE THIS.
Thanks! Let me know how they turn out for you!
Stacey: You haven’t steered me wrong yet so am sure this will be wonderful. Thanks for sharing it!
I sure hope you’ll enjoy it!!
Thanks for posting this! I can’t wait to try it!!
Absolutely! Let us know how it turns out for you!