Skillet Pizza Pasta is a one pot meal that any pizza-loving family will enjoy! Ready in the amount of time it takes your pasta to cook, this easy weeknight meal is go-to dinner in our house!
By now you’ve probably guessed my family is pizza-obsessed. From Friday night pizza night to pizza kabobs to pizza grilled cheese, throw pizza-esc ingredients in a recipe and my kids are likely to eat it. In fact, that’s the main reason I came up with skillet pizza pasta. I had extra pizza ingredients on hand [pepperoni, peppers, olives, and sauce– you can use whatever is your pizza topping preference] and no dough, so I swapped in whole wheat penne pasta. You could say this pasta is actually lighter than its traditional pizza counterpart but I won’t go that far because we did top ours with cheese. Which is a MUST in this house— we don’t want any of that cheese-free pizza around here!
The premise for this skillet pizza pasta like I explained is a trick I’ve found works [depending on the day] with my toddlers. If they like food or recipe X [such as pizza] then I turn it into another meal like skillet pizza pasta. The same could go for other kid favorites such as grilled cheese. You could play around with the cheeses, fillings [think apples, pears, tomatoes, or spinach] and bread [tortillas, buns, sandwich bread]. So you see, there’s a method to my pizza madness… and as long as my family is happily TRYING my food and going back for an extra bite or two, then Mom is one happy camper.
- Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, add olive oil to large non-stick skillet on medium-high heat.
- Brown pepperoni, bell peppers, and onions for about 5-7 minutes.
- Reduce heat to medium-low and add sauce and olives. Add cooked pasta and stir ingredients to combine.
- Once heated through, top with Parmesan cheese and serve immediately.
You know how the saying goes, “if Momma ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy.” Well when you are trying to feed particular-eating toddlers I think the saying should replace Momma with toddler! All you need is 15 minutes and your favorite pizza toppings for this skillet pizza pasta! Click To Tweet
Um, why haven’t I thought to make something like this – ever???? My family would LOVE this pasta! It’ looks great!