Pepperoni and Cheese Casserole

I’m always trying to get my kids to try new things at dinner, and I will admit that I fail quiet a bit. I remember as a kid that there were no options at dinner time. What was served was what you were going to eat, and that means things you probably did not ever want to try. Things like cooked cabbage, or heaven forbid, a vegetable. But today, well, it seems like kids, and my kids, have options, and there are times where they simply refuse to eat. One of my picky eaters refuses to eat melted cheese. Yep, I said it, refuses melted cheese. However, this kid loves pepperoni pizza. Pepperoni pizza has melted cheese, right? Ok, you get it. So this past week I was about to try something that I knew this kid loved (pepperoni pizza), but tweak it a bit and make it into a pepperoni casserole.

Let’s get started.

Ingredients: [ Print this Recipe ]

• 1 lb your favorite pasta
• 32 oz your favorite tomato sauce
• 1/2 lb ground beef, cooked
• 5 large leaves of fresh Italian basil, chopped
• 1 cup of Wisconsin cheese curds
• 2 cups of Queso Quesadilla, shredded
• 30 slices of pepperoni
• salt
• pepper

Begin by making the sauce for the casserole. To a saucepan, add in the tomato sauce. Add in the cooked ground beef, and the chopped basil leaves. Season with a bit of salt and pepper, to taste. Let this simmer while you cook your pasta.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

When you are ready to make the casserole, simply ladle some sauce into the bottom of a casserole dish. Add a layer of cooked pasta, add in a mixture of the cheese curds and shredded cheese, and then top with some pepperoni. Repeat, with another layer, then top that off with the remaining sauce.

Place this in the oven, uncovered for 35 minutes.

When you remove it from the oven, the pepperoni should be lightly charred, and the cheese should be fully melted. Let this cool for about 10 minutes before slicing into it.

To serve, cut a slice and garnish with fresh basil.

The end result is nothing but amazing. Every bite was delicious. It’s like pepperoni pizza, similar to lasagna, and all wrapped up in a casserole. Did I win with my picky eater? No. Not even a bite. Did I win with everyone else? Yes. This is a great comforting recipe any time of the year.  I hope you enjoy.