Dump Meals

Dump and Bake

Pizza Casserole

dumpmeals.com/recipes/pizza-casserole/

Uncooked rotini baked in pizza sauce with browned Italian sausage, then topped with mozzarella and pepperoni.

Pizza Casserole, served
A computer-made picture of the finished dish, not a photo of this recipe.
Serves
8
Prep
20 minutes
Bake
375°F, 60 to 70 minutes
Pan
9-by-13-inch dish, at least 3 inches deep

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Pizza casserole tastes like a pepperoni pizza baked into pasta. Uncooked rotini goes into the dish with pizza sauce, tomato sauce, water and browned Italian sausage, and it cooks in the oven as the sauce bubbles around it. Mozzarella and pepperoni go on top for the last few minutes, so the cheese melts and the pepperoni curls at the edges.

Rotini works well because the sauce clings to its spirals, but penne or ziti work too. Brown the sausage first and drain off the fat, and keep every piece of pasta under the sauce when the dish goes into the oven. Covering it tightly with foil traps the steam that cooks the pasta.

Serve with a green salad. Stir in sliced olives, chopped green pepper or mushrooms with the sausage if you like your pizza with everything.

Ingredients

Into the dish

  • 1 pound bulk Italian sausage, browned and drained
  • 1 pound dry rotini pasta, uncooked
  • 2 (14-ounce) jars pizza sauce
  • 1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
  • 1½ cups water
  • 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
  • nonstick cooking spray

At the end

  • 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
  • ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • 3 ounces sliced pepperoni

Directions

  1. Heat the oven to 375°F. Spray the dish and set it on a rimmed baking sheet.
  2. Brown the sausage, breaking it up, until it reads 160°F on a food thermometer (no pink is not proof). Drain the fat. Wash your hands and anything the raw sausage touched with hot, soapy water.
  3. In the dish, stir together the sauces, water, seasoning and sausage.
  4. Stir in the uncooked pasta and press it under the sauce.
  5. Cover tightly with foil and bake 30 minutes. Stir (mind the steam), press the pasta back under, cover, and bake 20 to 30 minutes more, until tender.
  6. Uncover, add the cheeses and pepperoni, and bake 10 minutes more.
  7. Check the center with a food thermometer. It must read at least 165°F. If it doesn't, bake 5 minutes more and check again. Rest 10 minutes.

It's done when the pasta is tender, the sauce is bubbling, and the center reads at least 165°F. Check with a food thermometer.

Leftovers go in the refrigerator within two hours, in shallow covered containers. Reheat them until hot all the way through (165°F).

Tips

  • Every piece of pasta must be covered with sauce, or it will stay hard.
  • Turkey pepperoni works the same way and is a little leaner.

Food-safety sources

More dump and bake

  • Baked Ziti from Uncooked Pasta Bake at 375°F, 60 to 70 minutes Uncooked ziti, browned ground beef, marinara, water and cheese baked covered in one dish. No boiling the pasta first.
  • Chicken and Rice Bake Bake at 375°F, 60 to 75 minutes Raw chicken thighs and uncooked rice baked under foil in a creamy broth. Serve with green beans.
  • Enchilada Casserole Bake at 350°F, 30 to 40 minutes Layers of corn tortillas, shredded chicken, black beans, enchilada sauce and cheese, baked until bubbly.
  • Meatball Sub Casserole Bake at 350°F, 35 to 45 minutes Cubed Italian bread, meatballs, marinara and mozzarella baked together. All the flavor of the sub, with a fork.