A zucchini noodle casserole with a ground beef – it’s hearty, cheesy, low-carb and super economical. AND, a big hit with my family! Zucchini Pizza Casserole is a great way to use up all those zucchini from the garden that can gang up on us by late July here in Kansas.
Easy Zucchini Pizza Casserole Recipe
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Howdy! Chef Alli Here. Let’s Get You Cookin’….Shall We? ?
Zucchini! If you grow zucchini in your garden, you already know that all of a sudden you’re going to have zucchini coming out of your ears. Suddenly, you’re trying to figure out what in the heck to cook that utilizes zucchini!
We have really enjoyed this recipe, Easy Zucchini Pizza Casserole, because it tastes just like that: PIZZA. I must admit, I was a bit skeptical at first, but once I saw how much my family liked this recipe (pretty much a total surprise since zucchini are vegetables, after all), I was thrilled.
We also like Low-Carb Mexican Zucchini Boats and if you need a big ole pan of “pasta”, do check out Skillet-Baked Zucchini Lasagna Roll Ups – it’s the bomb and zucchini strips used in place of the lasagna noodles are fantastic – another shocker that I was so thrilled to experience.
Are you ready for a zucchini news flash that’s a shocker??
Here goes: You can make Zucchini Oatmeal Crunch that tastes just like Apple Crisp. No lie, either. Somebody told me this, so I had to prove them wrong. Whoever heard of such a thing? Zucchini in place of apples in a dessert? No way.
Well, I was wrong! As it turns out, you can make chunks of zucchini taste just like apples when baked with some lemon juice, sugar, and cinnamon! They even have the same texture, who knew about this all along and never told me???? Crazy.
Things to Love About this Recipe –
- Zucchini noodles are the bomb!
- If you peel the zucchini before making the zoodles, your family won’t even guess it’s not pasta.
- Zoodles are fun to make.
- It’s a low-carb…..and luscious.
- You’ll likely have most all of the ingredients on hand.
What ingredients will you need to make Cheesy Zucchini Casserole?
- Zucchini….of course (transformed into zucchini noodles, aka zoodles)
- Parmesan
- Eggs
- Mozzarella cheese
- Lean ground beef
- Garlic
- Seasonings: dehydrated onion flakes and Italian seasoning
- Tomato sauce
- Green bell pepper, optional
- Mini pepperoni
How to Make Zucchini Pepperoni Pizza Casserole in 4 Easy Steps:
- Make the zucchini crust and place it into a 8″ x 11″ greased casserole dish; bake until set.
- Meanwhile, brown the ground beef with the garlic and seasonings, then drain well; stir in the tomato sauce.
- When the crust is done, spoon the meat sauce over the crust, then top the casserole with cheese, pepperoni and diced green pepper, if desired.
- Bake the Zucchini Pizza Casserole until done. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Helpful Recipe Tips for Making Zucchini Pizza Casserole
- Any time you’re working with zucchini noodles, you’ve got to make for sure that you really get nearly ALL the moisture out of them. Otherwise, you’ll have one soggy mess on your hands and your family will never want to try zucchini casserole again!
- Sprinkling zucchini noodles with salt helps them release their moisture, but this is only the beginning of the moisture removal. Using your hands, squeeze the zucchini noodles over a colander; next, place them into a yogurt straining bag, strong paper towels, or cheesecloth and wring them out as much as possible without destroying them.
- This recipe is delicious made with ground beef or Italian sausage; be sure to drain the fats that accumulate when cooking the meat before adding the tomato sauce.
- If preferred, you can add the diced bell pepper directly to the sauce, a pretty great way to disguise it from the kiddos.
- If preferred, you can make this a meat-less casserole for a delicious vegetarian option.
How to Make Zucchini Noodles
There are lots of “zoodler” tools out there – they are actually called spiralizers. I have a very basic one (see the pic below) that involves placing the zucchini into one end of the spiralizer, then turning the zucchini as the zoodles feed out one side, continuing until the zucchini is completely spiralized into noodles.
In order to use the spiralizer I have, the zucchinis have to be fairly small in size which is just how I like them!
I usually don’t peel my zucchini before spiralizing them, but that’s a personal preference. Trimming both ends of the zucchini before spiralizing is recommended.
If I don’t have a zucchini spiralizer, can I still make this recipe?
Great question, and yes you can. Peel the zucchini and slice it very thinly, then chopped the slices; place into a colander and sprinkle with salt. Let the chopped zucchini drain, then wrap it in paper towels, cheesecloth, or place into a yogurt strainer, squeezing out as much moisture as you can.
Combine with the chopped zucchini with the eggs, Parmesan, and the cheeses; bake as directed.
Other Family-Favorite Recipes to Enjoy –
Loaded BBQ Pulled Pork Sweet Potatoes
Italian Sausage and Ricotta Stuffed Pasta Shells
Twisted Mexican Hot Tot Skillet
Beef and Cheese Mexican Sanchiladas
Instant Pot Cuban Pork Tenderloin with Black Beans and Rice
4-Ingredient Air Fryer Honey-Glazed Salmon
Sausage, Apple, and Rosemary Sheet Pan Meal
Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Sliders
Instant Pot Lazy-Butt Beef Subs with Caramelized Onions and BBQ Mayo
Printable Directions for Making Zucchini Pepperoni Pizza Bake
Easy Zucchini Pizza Casserole
Ingredients
- 4 cups zucchini noodles peeled, if desired (and if you want the noodles to look just like pasta)
- 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese divided use
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese divided use
- 1 lb. lean ground beef may substitute Italian sausage if preferred
- 2 tsp. dehydrated onion flakes
- 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
- 1-2 cloves garlic crushed
- 8 oz. can tomato sauce
- 1/2 cup mini pepperoni
- 1/4 cup green bell pepper seeds and membranes removes, diced
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Place zucchini noodles into a colander; sprinkle with salt; allow the zucchini to rest for 10 minutes in the colander; using your hands, wring out at much moisture as you can. Now wrap the zucchini noodles in strong paper towels or cheesecloth, squeezing out any remaining moisture. (A yogurt straining bag, also known as a nut milk bag, works well for this.)
- Next, combine the zucchini noodles with the eggs, Parmesan, and half of the mozzarella and cheddar cheeses; press this mixture into a greased 8 x 11 baking dish; bake for 20 minutes, uncovered, on the center oven rack.
- Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium heat, cook the ground beef with the onion flakes, Italian seasoning, and crushed garlic, crumbling the beef as it cooks until it is no longer pink and is fully cooked throughout. Drain any fats that accumulate, then stir the tomato sauce into the cooked ground beef.
- Spoon the ground beef mixture over the zucchini mixture in the baking dish; sprinkle with the remaining cheeses, mini pepperoni, and diced bell pepper, if desired.
- Bake the casserole, uncovered, on the center oven rack 25-30 minutes or until hot and bubbly throughout. Let the casserole rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
- Any time you’re working with zucchini noodles, you’ve got to make for sure that you really get nearly ALL the moisture out of them. Otherwise, you’ll have one soggy mess on your hands and your family will never want to try zucchini casserole again!
- Sprinkling zucchini noodles with salt helps them release their moisture, but this is only the beginning of the moisture removal. Using your hands, squeeze the zucchini noodles over a colander; next, place them into a yogurt straining bag, strong paper towels, or cheesecloth and wring them out as much as possible without destroying them.
- This recipe is delicious made with ground beef or Italian sausage; be sure to drain the fats that accumulate when cooking the meat before adding the tomato sauce.
- If preferred, you can add the diced bell pepper directly to the sauce, but I think they look really pretty and colorful on top.
- If preferred, you can make this a meat-less casserole for a vegetarian option – it’s still quite delish.
- For a more kid-friendly version of this pizza casserole, substitute mini pepperoni for the green bell pepper on top.
Nutrition
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Let’s Get You Cookin’,
Chef Alli
From the Land of Kansas is the state trademark program that promotes and celebrates agricultural experiences and products that are grown, raised, produced, or created in Kansas. Visit their website for more information. Our featured guest and member business for this blog post and televised segment on Good Morning KAKEland is Grace Worcester, an intern with From the Land of Kansas who joined me to share about Farmer’s Market Week (and a fun give-away), Kansas State Fair Virtual Shopping, and Holiday Gift Boxes. All recipe creation and opinions expressed within this post are my own.
**Disclosure of Material Connection: This is a “sponsored post.” The company who sponsored it compensated me via a cash payment, gift, or something else of value to write it. It may also contain “affiliate links”. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
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