This has become one of our family favorites and it is one of the easiest to take for a potluck or for sending as a meal for another family. It takes a little time and it is one of those recipes that if your are going to make one, you might as well make 4 or 8 of them and put some in the freezer for a later date.

This will make 4 – 9×13 trays of pasta.

Ingredients

4 boxes of rotini (or pasta of your choice)

2 lbs of ground beef

2 lbs of ground sausage

2 large onions

9 cloves garlic

2 Tablespoons Italian Seasoning

3 large jars Prego meat pasta sauce

1 large can of tomato sauce

2 – 8 ounce packages of pepperoni

5 lbs of mozzarella cheese

Instructions

1 . Cook pasta according to directions to just under the lowest time given so that it is almost done. So if it is 7-9 minutes, cook just under 7 minutes. Drain and set aside.

2. While the pasta is cooking, cook the ground beef and the sausage until browned.

3. Cut most of the pepperoni into quarters. Save some whole pepperonis for the top.

4. Add the onions and cook until translucent.

5. Add the garlic and Italian seasoning and stir on medium for just a minute or two.

6. Drain off any excess oil from the meat mixture.

7. In a large bowl, combine the meat mixture, noodles, pepperoni, tomato sauce, pasta sauce, and half of the cheese. Stir gently until all combined.

8. Scoop into the individual trays. Top with more cheese and the whole pepperonis.

9. Cook on 350 degrees F for about 1 hour or until hot and bubbly.

*This freezes well. Cover and freeze. Thaw in the freezer over night.

**Crockpot instructions:

Ours is a large crock pot and takes up about half of this recipe or two of the trays worth. When searching online, I found this recipe that is amazingly similar to the one that we have been making for years. https://realhousemoms.com/crock-pot-pizza-casserole-backtoschoolweek/ You should spray your crock pot with non stick spray, and cook on LOW for 3.5-4 hour. If it is cooked on high or longer than 4 hours, it may burn.