Name: Pepperoni Pizza Penne Pasta Recipe
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 12 oz penne pasta; 1 cup marinara sauce; ½ tsp dried oregano; 4 oz mini pepperoni; 8 oz mini mozzarella balls; basil; Spicy Breadcrumb Topper:; 2 tbsp butter; ½ cup breadcrumbs; ¼ tsp red pepper flakes; pinch salt and pepper

How To Make Pepperoni Pizza Penne Pasta

This Pepperoni Pizza Penne Pasta dish brings the delights of your favorite pepperoni pizza into pasta form, with marinara, mini pepperoni, mozzarella balls.

Preparation: 5 minutes

Cooking: 30 minutes

Total: 35 minutes

Serves:

Ingredients

12ozpenne pasta
1cupmarinara sauce,homemade, or store-bought
½tspdried oregano
4ozmini pepperoni
8ozmini mozzarella balls
basil,chopped, to garnish

Spicy Breadcrumb Topper:

2tbspbutter
½cupbreadcrumbs
¼tspred pepper flakes
pinchsalt and pepper

Instructions

Add the penne pasta to salted water and cook according to the package instructions.

Spicy Breadcrumb Topper:

While the pasta cooks, melt the butter in a small skillet over low heat.
Add the breadcrumbs and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring regularly, for 4 to 5 minutes until breadcrumbs are toasted and browned.
Season with a pinch of salt and pepper.

To Assemble:

When the penne has cooked, drain it and return to the hot pot. Stir in the marinara sauce and oregano.
Turn off the heat, fold in the mini pepperonis, and mini mozzarella balls.
Divide the pepperoni pizza penne between the bowls and garnish with fresh basil and spicy crispy breadcrumbs, if using.

Recipe Notes

If there are no mini pepperonis, use normal-sized pepperoni and cut it into quarters. If there are leftovers, toss it in a small buttered baking dish, adding the leftover crispy breadcrumbs to the top, and baking it the next day at 350 degrees F for about 20 minutes for a delicious baked pasta dish.