one pot cheesy baked pizza pasta
When astrology ain’t on your side, noods are the answer to the blues.
Yesterday morning after my shift at The Day Job, I wandered over to Trader Joe’s since I’ve been hearing rumors of their fall items returning slowly to shelves. Florida is usually one of the last to receive the bulk of the highly-sought goodies, but I did land my favorite maple oat milk and a supple pumpkin body scrub that I can’t wait to try. I hadn’t visited TJs in, lord, months, prior to that quick stopover. Used to go every Wednesday, but since I changed my availability at work, I haven’t the time for that adventure. And dealing with a TJs parking lot after noon is a total nightmare scenario.
I dunno, I’ve been in a funk lately, and am having a lot of difficulty concentrating. When that happens, I usually turn to old comforts that usually distract me, at least for a time, from thinking too hard about things causing me turmoil. The morning I cooked up today’s lovely dish, I had to really pep talk myself into making anything at all.
Someone claimed Mercury is in retrograde right now, and I honestly don’t doubt it. I’ll blame that for my constant pumpkin bread cravings, too.
For a big pot of nomilicious soul-nourishing food tonight, make this One Pot Cheesy Baked Pizza Pasta. It is just the easiest. We swap out ground meat for minced mushrooms caramelized in butter and oil, then swirled with seasonings and cooked with your favorite pasta noodles. Finish off with plenty of tomato sauce, cheese, and either vegetarian or regular pepperonis – your choice! – and you’ve got a hearty, wonderful meal even your kids will slap in their maws eagerly when they’re finished with homework.
Childhood cravings and adult nostalgia combined, and plenty of carbs to boot. Don’t see a negative about any of this, so let’s get eatin’, folks!
Shroom in the Room
Because meat ain’t our thang here, we’re making a succulent mushroom sauce as the base for our pizza-inspired skillet o’ noodles.
Choose a meatier variety of mushroom for this. I like simple ole baby bella mushrooms, but shiitakes would work fine, or big portobello caps. I wouldn’t shell out too much for a more exotic fungus since you’re just dicing it up into a mince anyway.
Melt a couple tablespoons of butter in your skillet. An oven-safe skillet is ideal here, like regular or enameled cast iron, but if you don’t have one, you can transfer everything over to a baking dish of some sort later.
Anywho, stir in the mushrooms and some salt and pepper. Cook undisturbed for 5 minutes until juicy and golden. Throw in some garlic, dried oregano, dried basil, dried fennel, and red pepper flakes (if you don’t love spice, omit the lattermost). This is your “pizza seasoning” and adds a ton of flavor to the finished dish.
Piles of Noods
Next, cook your noodles in that same pot your mushrooms currently reside.
Boil some water, chuck in your noods, and let em soften. I like shells, but select your favorite. I’ve seen some damn fun pasta shapes out there lately.
Finish up the skillet by stirring in your marinara sauce. Marinara is one of those things that, unless we have an abundance of time and can cook up a big batch is perfectly fine to buy in stores. Trader Joes makes a good storebrand bottle, but I usually pick up Rao’s when I can.
At this point, if you need to move your pasta into an oven-safe vessel, do so. Sprinkle on a mix of mozzarella and fontina cheeses, and arrange your favorite pepperonis atop. I buy vegetarian, and always have left over for a pizza. Shit, a pizza and a pizza pasta in one week? Why not? When Mercury is in retrograde, there are no rules.
Bake until the cheese gets nice and melty, gooey, and ripples with golden specks in a few spots. Garnish with fresh basil and stick your biggest spoon inside to get a good glob out for your plate.
There, something a little comfy for annoying days, after yesterday’s detoxifying salad. Hell, you could pair them both together for a satisfying dinner that’s both nutritious and delicious.
Sheesh, I sound like a cereal commercial now.
Tried this recipe out? Leave a rating and comment below with your thoughts, and don’t forget to come say hi on Instagram and show me what you made!
Do the im-pasta-ble:
One Pot Parmesan “Bacon” and Asparagus Pasta
One Pot Lemon Ricotta Asparagus Pasta
One Pot Sundried Tomato Pesto Ricotta Pasta
one pot cheesy baked pizza pasta
Ingredients
- 2 cups baby portobello mushrooms, diced
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp dried oregano
- 2 tsp dried basil
- 1 tsp dried fennel
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, or to taste
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 lb short cut pasta
- 1 24-oz jar marinara sauce
- 1 1/2 cups low-moisture mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 1 cup fontina cheese, shredded
- 10-12 vegetarian pepperonis (or regular
- fresh herbs, to serve
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- In an oven-safe skillet, melt the butter with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Stir in the mushrooms and a pinch of salt and pepper. Saute undisturbed for 5 minutes. Add a drizzle more oil if needed, then stir in the oregano, basil, fennel, red pepper flakes, and garlic for 1-2 minutes until very fragrant.
- Pour in 3 cups of water and bring to a boil. Drop in the pastas and cook according to package directions. Lower the heat and stir in the marinara sauce.
- Remove the pan from the heat. Transfer to an oven-safe baking dish or pan, if needed. Sprinkle on the cheeses, then top with pepperoni.
- Transfer to the oven and bake for 12-15 minutes until the cheese is melty, bubbling, and golden in spots. Let sit 5 minutes, then serve with fresh herbs and cracked black pepper.
