Upside Down Pizza

Who doesn’t love pizza? I sure love all the flavors and textures of pizzas, but take-out can get pricy. This Upside Down Pizza Casserole has all the best parts of a  pizza, including a crust-like topping that’s way tastier! Grab a fork and dig in!

Like many families, mine loves pizza. But I don’t always love the price or the fact that we eat out of a pizza box when I do order in. The answer to all this is Upside Down Pizza Casserole!

This is such an easy recipe. I love serving this on chilly nights, but I’m often asked to bring it to potlucks and family events, too. Everybody always seems to want some, and the dish always comes back home empty.

What Is Upside Down Pizza?

Imagine all the best parts of a pizza in a casserole dish! This layered casserole recipe features meaty goodness topped with a crust-like topping. What’s not to love? It’s like if you took a pizza and flipped it over, and added a biscuit-like cheesy crust. All that ooey-gooey deliciousness in a casserole dish! 

This is such an easy dish to make. If you can brown ground beef, then you can make this pizza casserole recipe. Plus, I can serve a salad or veggie with this meal and be happy knowing that I’ve served my family a delish meal with some nutritional value.

Ingredients

You don’t need any fancy ingredients for this Upside Down Pizza recipe – in fact, you may have just about everything in your pantry, fridge, and freezer!

• Ground beef – Use lean ground beef or drain off the fat after browning the beef.
• Onion – A white or yellow onion; chopped.
• Garlic – Fresh garlic cloves; minced.
• Mozzarella cheese – You’ll need a big block or bag of pre-shredded cheese.
• Tomato sauce – A 15-ounce can of tomato sauce.
• Tomato paste – A 6-ounce can.
• Garlic salt – Divided.
• Italian seasoning
• Paprika
• Milk
• Eggs
• Olive oil
• All-purpose flour
• Parmesan cheese

How To Make Upside Down Pizza

1. Preheat your oven to 350-F degrees and spray a 13×9 inch baking dish with cooking spray.
2. Brown the ground beef, onion, and minced garlic in a large skillet. Drain off any fat and season it with salt and pepper to taste.
3. Combine the tomato sauce, tomato paste, garlic salt, Italian seasoning, and paprika in a bowl. Mix well.
4. Combine the tomato sauce with the meat mixture, and mix well.
5. Sprinkle the mozzarella over the bottom of the casserole pan, then layer the saucy meat mixture over the cheese.
6. Mix the eggs, milk, flour, oil, and garlic salt in another bowl until smooth. Pour this mixture over the meat in the baking dish.
7. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over the batter and bake until hot, bubbly, and golden brown.
8. Enjoy!

Recipe Tips

• You can make this entire Upside Down Pizza recipe and pop it into the fridge to bake later. You can make it up to a day in advance.
• Swap out the mozzarella cheese for an Italian blend to change up the flavor a bit.
• Any kind of Italian seasoning will work, or you can use 1 teaspoon of dried basil, 1 teaspoon of dried oregano, ½ teaspoon of dried thyme, and ½ teaspoon of dried rosemary if you don’t have Italian seasoning.
• Substitute a can or jar of pizza sauce instead of making your own from tomato sauce, tomato paste, and seasonings.
• You can use ground chicken or even ground pork instead of ground beef. Bulk Italian sausage is also pretty tasty in this dish!
• Mix in some chopped pepperoni – or some other of your favorite pizza toppings. There are so many varieties of this recipe that you can make!

Serving Suggestions

I love serving this meaty casserole dish with a fresh, green salad and a tangy dressing, or I’ll pair it with a simple green vegetable. Sometimes I get a bit fancier and serve homemade bread on the side or a light and fruity slaw.

Storage Instructions

Pack any leftovers in an airtight container and store them in the fridge for 3-4 days. You can also freeze this casserole before or after baking. Before baking, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and then foil wrap and freeze it for up to a month. Let it thaw before baking. After baking, let the casserole thaw, then reheat it in a preheated 350-F oven until it is heated through.

Reheat your leftovers in a covered oven-safe dish or in the microwave.

Print Pin

Upside Down Pizza

Author Mrs Happy Homemaker

Ingredients

For the pizza filling:

• 2 lbs ground chuck
• 1 large onion chopped
• 4-5 cloves garlic minced
• 1 pound Mozzarella cheese shredded
• salt & pepper to taste

For the pizza sauce:

• 1 15oz can tomato sauce
• 1 6oz can tomato paste
• 1 tbsp garlic salt
• 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
• 1 tsp paprika

For the pizza crust:

• 1 cup milk
• 2 eggs
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp garlic salt
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• Parmesan cheese to taste

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• In a large sauté pan, cook the ground chuck along with the diced onion. When the beef is done, stir in the minced garlic and cook for another 60 seconds. Remove from the heat & drain the grease. Season with garlic salt & Italian seasoning.
• Mix together the pizza sauce ingredients & add to the drained beef mixture.
• Spray a 9×13 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese over bottom of the casserole dish. Spread the meat mixture over the cheese.
• In a large bowl, mix together the eggs, milk, flour, oil, & garlic salt. Pour this mixture over the meat in the casserole dish. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake 35 minutes at 350.

Other Delicious Pizza Recipes

• English Muffin Pizzas
• Pepperoni Chips
• Sloppy Joe French Bread Pizzas