Sausage Pizza Bake

Submitted by Leslie in Texas

"Another recipe from my Clip and Save binder that's at least 30 years old. It's handwritten, so I must have copied it from a magazine.Anyway, it's good comfort food, kid friendly, that you can "tweak" to your family's likings! You can also use regular "original style" bulk pork sausage and throw in whatever your family likes on pizzas...sliced black olives, mushrooms, diced pepperoni...you get the idea!"

 

• Ready In: 1hr 5mins
• Ingredients: 11
• Serves: 6-8

ingredients

• 1 lb bulk Italian sausage
• 8 ounces small elbow macaroni
• 1⁄2 cup green bell pepper, chopped
• 1⁄2 cup onion, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 (8 ounce) cans tomato sauce
• 1⁄4 teaspoon oregano
• 1⁄2 teaspoon basil
• 1⁄2 cup water
• 6 ounces mozzarella cheese, diced
• 1⁄4 cup parmesan cheese, grated

directions

1. In a large skillet, brown the sausage, breaking it up into small pieces as it cooks. Remove from skillet and drain.( I like to put the sausage in a colander and run hot water over it to get all the grease off that I can ).
2. As sausage is cooking, bring a medium pot of water to a boil and cook the macaroni until al dente ( slightly firm to the tooth). You don't want to cook it too long or the final product will be mushy.
3. Add green pepper, onion,garlic, oregano and basil to the skillet and cook until onions are wilted but not browned. Add a small bit of olive oil or water, if necessary.
4. Stir in tomato sauce and the water; simmer over low heat for 5 minutes.
5. In a 2 1/2 quart casserole dish that has been coated with cooking spray, combine the macaroni, sausage, and tomato sauce mixture, mixing well.
6. Add half of the mozzarelle cheese and half ( 2 T. ) of the Parmesan cheese to the casserole dish and mix to distribute evenly.
7. Top casserole with remaining diced Mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.
8. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake for an additional 10 minutes, or until top is golden brown.

Reviews

[KitKat54]

Made this over the weekend and it is really yummy. I used fresh mushrooms, red and green peppers, black olives, diced pepperoni, onions, about 4 cloves of garlic and added 1 tsp. of red pepper flakes. I used whole wheat pasta and even my husband, who does NOT eat elbow macaroni (he'll eat spaghetti and he'll eat noodles but not elbow macaroni - weird, right?) was so intrigued by the smell that he ate some and said it was really good! It also freezes well. Thanks for a keeper!!

 

[Wineaux]

Had this for dinner last night and will make it again and again and again!! Quick and Easy and Yummy!!