I needed a quick dinner so that I could get the family out the door and to the Science Fair for my son and middle school scheduling night for my daughter.  So, this was another to-go dinner.  As anyone who has read my posts in the past knows,  at least two nights a week my family eats dinner in the car.  I refuse to go through drive thru or get take-out when I know I can give them something to eat that I can control what it is made from.

This recipe fit all the things I needed.

Ingredients:

• 1 bag of egg noodles, wide, boiled to al dente
• 1  28 oz. can of tomato sauce
• 2 TBSP oregano
• 2 tsp powdered garlic
• 1/2 cup plus 2 TBSP Kraft Parmesan Cheese
• 2 tsp red pepper flakes, if desired
• salt and pepper
• 1 lb. mozzarella cheese, grated
• 1 package of pre-sliced pepperoni, I used Turkey pepperoni
• Any additional pizza toppings your family may like – red peppers diced, green peppers diced, diced onion, black olives, mushrooms, Italian sausage, cheddar cheese, bacon,  etc…

Directions:

1. Pre heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 13″x9″ pan with non-stick spray.
2. Boil egg noodles, according to directions on package, until slightly al dente.
3. Mix tomato sauce, oregano, garlic powder, 2  TBSP Kraft Parmesan Cheese, red pepper flakes (if desired) in a large bowl.  Taste and add salt, pepper and additional spices to suit your family.  My children actually like more garlic and oregano but most children don’t.
4. Add 1/4 cup of your sauce in the bowl to the bottom of the prepared pan.   Spread a thin layer over the bottom of the pan.
5. Drain egg noodles after cooking and place the noodles in the bottom of your baking dish.  Press lightly with the back of a spoon to form your “crust.”
6. Drizzle 2 cups of sauce, or more, over the egg noodles.  Spread to cover the noodles.
7. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese over the sauce and noodles.
8. Place a layer of pepperoni over the egg noodle and sauce “pizza.”  I completely covered it by slightly overlapping each piece of pepperoni onto the next.
9. At this point you may add any additional pizza toppings you wish to create your family’s own”Pizza” casserole.
10. Cover with mozzarella cheese.
11. Place any remaining pepperoni on top of the cheese to crisp up.
12. Bake for 25-30 minutes then place in broiler for 1-3 minutes until brown and bubbly.  Watch this last step carefully or your cheese may burn.  It only takes a moment to go from brown and delicious to burnt and useless.

My family loved this recipe.  It was simple, tasty and everyone could find something they liked about it.  My son liked the “ton of pepperoni” while my daughter loved all the “gooey cheese.”

Both children took this to school for lunch the next day so in our household it was a hit!