Fall has got me in one Cozy mood! I can’t get enough of warm sweaters, soft, plush blankets and comforting meals! Hey, if the weather isn’t great for spending all day outdoors, you may as well make the most of the being inside. I have been making casseroles like crazy lately. Casseroles are so great for family meals because they are an all in one satisfying dinner. My children also don’t seem to mind extra things ( like vegetables they may not normally eat without a little fuss) added to the dish. If you freezer cook on a regular basis or are following my Stock Your Freezer Fridays Series, you know how well casseroles freeze too! This yummy Supreme Pizza Pasta Casserole is one of those crowd pleasing meals that you are going to want to make again and again.
This delicious casserole is loaded with all of your favorite supreme pizza toppings! Italian sausage is cooked with peppers and onions, then simmered in a pasta sauce full of Italian herb crushed tomatoes, fire roasted tomatoes, pepperoni, mushrooms, and sliced black olives.
The tasty sauce is then tossed with perfectly cooked penne pasta, transferred to a casserole dish and topped with shredded Italian Blend cheeses and a little basil. The casserole bakes in the oven for 20 minutes until the creamy cheese is melted and it’s nice and bubbly!
This recipe makes enough for (2) 9 x 13 Casseroles! That’s right! One for dinner the night you make it and one to store in your freezer for later.
If you’ve never frozen a casserole before, don’t worry, it’s easy. You don’t have to bake the second casserole. Just let it cool, cover it and freeze. When you are ready to bake it, thaw it in your refrigerator overnight and bake as usual the next day for dinner! I love knowing I have an extra, pre made meal ready to go in my freezer. You never know when something unexpected will come up, or when you just don’t feel like making dinner. It’s nice to kind of take a night off from the kitchen once in a while! 🙂
I hope you give this casserole a try real soon! It’s become a regular on our monthly menu!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs. Italian Sausage (we like sweet)
- 1 green pepper, diced
- 1 yellow pepper, diced
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 (28 oz.) can crushed tomatoes with Italian herbs
- 1 (24 oz.) jar your favorite pasta sauce with mushrooms
- 1 (15 oz.) can fire roasted chopped tomatoes
- 1 (4 oz.) can mushrooms, drained
- 1 (2.25 oz.) can sliced black olives, drained
- 6-12 oz. sliced pepperoni (personal preference)
- 2 lbs. penne pasta, cooked and drained, do not rinse
- 4 cups Italian blend shredded cheese
- 1 Tbsp. dried basil
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large dutch oven (mine is 7 qt. and it's perfect for this) brown the sausage on medium heat with the peppers and onions.
- When no more pink remains and the vegetables are softened, add the crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, pasta sauce, mushrooms, olives and pepperoni.
- Mix together well, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
- While the sauce is simmering, cook your pasta.
- After the pasta is cooked and drained, add it to the sauce and coat the pasta well.
- Divide evenly into (2) 9 x 13 casserole dishes.
- Top each casserole with 2 cups of the cheese and sprinkle evenly with the dried basil.
- Let one casserole cool before covering and freezing, and bake the other one in the oven for 20 minutes, or until bubbly and the cheese is melted.
- Serve warm with a salad and garlic bread.
- 1 Casserole serves 6 generously.
- Enjoy!
- *To freeze, prepare as usual, cool, cover and freeze. Thaw in the refrigerator the night before you are going to bake, and bake as usual. You may also bake from frozen, but it will require a longer cooking time.
Linking up at Miz Helen’s Country Cottage, Living Well Spending Less, The Best Blog Recipes, Cooking with Curls, Simply Gloria, Feeding Big, Pint Sized Baker, Hun What’s For Dinner, Savvy Southern Style, The New Mrs Adventures, Just A Girl and Her Blog
Morning Shannon!! This is on the table today! Looks delish and a perfect comfort meal. Thanks!!
Hi Joy! I hope you like this:) We loved it! I am all for comforting food this time of year.
Pizza and Pasta together? yum! Thanks for linking this great recipe at the In and Out of the Kitchen link party.
Cynthia L recently posted…Cranberry-Ginger Oatmeal Cookies
Thank you Cynthia! 🙂
Your Supreme Pizza Pasta Casserole will be outstanding and I can’t wait to try it. Hope you are having a great day and thanks so much for sharing your awesome post with Full Plate Thursday.
Come Back Soon!
Miz Helen
Miz Helen recently posted…Cornbread Dressing Casserole
Thank you Miz Helen! 🙂 We love it!
Hi Shannon, great Pizza dish! How about adding it to the Food on Friday: Pizza collection over at Carole’s Chatter? Cheers
Carole from Carole’s Chatter recently posted…Food on Friday: Pizza
Thank you so much Carole! 🙂