Easy Pizza Pasta Bake (Ground Beef or Venison)

This easy pizza pasta bake combines everything you love about pizza night with the comfort of a hearty pasta casserole. Made with ground beef or venison, plenty of sauce, melty mozzarella cheese, and your favorite pizza toppings, it's a simple dinner the whole family will devour.

The first time I made this recipe, my husband and all three of our boys cleaned their plates and immediately requested more pepperoni next time. That's always a good sign around here.

This pizza pasta bake is quick enough for a busy weeknight, hearty enough to satisfy hungry teenagers, and versatile enough to customize with whatever pizza toppings your family loves most. 

Why You'll Love This Pizza Pasta Bake

If your family loves pizza night, this easy pizza pasta bake is about to become a regular part of your dinner rotation. It combines the classic pizza flavors everyone loves with a hearty pasta casserole that feeds a crowd.

This easy dinner recipe is perfect for busy weeknights when you need something filling, affordable, and guaranteed to disappear. With plenty of meat, pasta, pizza sauce, marinara sauce, and melted cheese, it's the kind of comfort food the whole family gets excited about.

Whether you make it with ground beef from the grocery store or ground venison from the freezer, this pizza pasta recipe is simple, satisfying, and easy to customize with your favorite pizza toppings.

• Made with simple pantry ingredients
• Works with ground beef or ground venison
• Family-friendly and kid-approved
• Easy to adapt for picky eaters and pizza lovers alike
• Great for meal prep and leftovers
• Can be made with regular or gluten-free pasta
• Perfect for busy weeknights

This is a big casserole! A standard 9x13-inch baking dish will be nearly full. I usually bake it in my 5-quart Dutch oven because it gives me a little extra room for all that cheese and pepperoni.

Ingredients

• 1 pound (16 ounces) fusilli pasta - or substitute rotini, penne or rigatoni
• 1½ pounds ground beef, ground venison, or ground Italian sausage
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 jar (25 ounces) marinara sauce - I usually use Simple Truth Organic No Sugar Added Marinara Sauce.
• 1 can (15 ounces) pizza sauce - Muir Glen Pizza Sauce is my favorite for this recipe.
• 2 tablespoons water
• 8 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese
• 4 ounces pepperoni slices, divided. Mini pepperonis work especially well in this recipe because they distribute evenly throughout the casserole and don't require chopping!

How to Make Pizza Pasta Bake

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the fusilli according to package directions until al dente. Drain and set aside.
3. While the pasta cooks, brown the ground beef or venison in a large skillet over medium heat. Season with the salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder. I use a stainless steel Meat Masher to break up the burger in my 12" cast-iron skillet.
4. If using higher-fat ground beef, drain any excess grease. If using lean ground beef or venison, draining is usually unnecessary.
5. Add the cooked pasta, browned meat, marinara sauce, pizza sauce, and chopped pepperoni to a large pot. Swirl about 1 tablespoon of water in each empty sauce container to capture every last bit of sauce, then pour it in. Stir everything together until the pasta is well coated. I usually use the same pot I boiled the pasta in because it saves me from washing another dish later.
6. Transfer the mixture to a greased 9x13-inch baking dish or 5 quart dutch oven.
7. Sprinkle the mozzarella cheese evenly over the top and arrange pepperoni slices as desired.
8. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the cheese is melted, bubbly, and lightly golden around the edges.
9. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Favorite Pizza Topping Variations

One of my favorite things about this pizza casserole is how easy it is to customize. Start with the basic recipe, then add your favorite toppings to create your own perfect version.

Cheesy Pepperoni Pizza Pasta Bake

Mix extra chopped pepperoni into the pasta mixture and add additional slices of pepperoni over the top before baking. If your family is anything like mine, they will probably ask for extra pepperoni next time.

Supreme Pizza Pasta

For a more grown-up version, add sautéed bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, and black olives. This variation tastes just like a loaded supreme pizza.

Meat Lover's Pizza Pasta

Add cooked ground sausage, bacon, and extra pepperoni for a hearty dinner packed with protein.

Veggie Pizza Pasta

Add mushrooms, spinach, onions, bell peppers, and olives for a vegetable-packed version that still delivers all the classic pizza flavors.

What to Serve with Pizza Pasta Bake

This casserole is hearty enough to stand on its own, but we usually pair it with garlic bread and a simple salad. If I'm keeping things extra easy, canned peaches, applesauce, or fresh fruit work perfectly too. Sometimes dinner doesn't need to be complicated.

The Secret to the Best Pizza Pasta Bake

The secret to getting true pizza flavor instead of baked spaghetti flavor is using both marinara sauce and pizza sauce.

Marinara sauce provides the body and moisture, while pizza sauce delivers the concentrated seasoning and flavor we all associate with pizza night. The combination creates a rich meat sauce that coats every piece of pasta without becoming dry during baking.

It's a simple trick, but it's what makes this taste like pizza instead of baked spaghetti.

Storage tips for Pizza Pasta Casserole

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

This pizza pasta casserole reheats beautifully in the microwave and makes an excellent next-day lunch. In fact, I think the flavors are even better the next day.

You can also freeze this casserole for future meals. Once cooled, wrap tightly and freeze for up to 3 months. It makes a great freezer meal for busy seasons of life.

Frequently Asked Questions

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