This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Cooked Perfect® Meatballs. All opinions are 100% mine.
This 30 minute Meatball Grinder Casserole is perfect for easy weeknight dinners, and you can easily turn the leftovers into another meal!
Do you ever have one of those nights where you’ve done no planning whatsoever, but you need to get dinner on the table fast? I seem to have them a lot lately. Between my new work schedule at the gym, the blog, and trying to get to as many cross country meets as possible for my high school son and my college daughter (many of which are hours away), planning seems to have gone out the window.
But today I am going to share with you a super fast casserole that you can throw together in literally minutes, with little to no planning required, other than adding the ingredients to your grocery list.
I just recently discovered Cooked Perfect® Fresh Meatballs, and I am absolutely loving them! They’re already cooked, which makes them a great solution for busy weeknight meals! And the flavor is excellent…must be the flame-broiling! It really sears in the flavor. I like that there are no preservatives or artificial ingredients too. Even my husband, who is a little bit of what I would call a meatball snob, liked them. I ended up making a Meatball Grinder Casserole out of the Cooked Perfect Italian Style Beef & Pork Meatballs for my boys because I knew it would make both of them happy…and that’s the best part about food to me. I’ve talked a lot on the blog about my family’s obsession with food and meals we love to eat. Even if I make something that is quick and easy, I want it to taste great.
With only a few ingredients, this recipe is so simple, I wondered if I could get away with calling it a casserole. According to Wikipedia, a casserole is a recipe cooked in a large deep dish in the oven and served out of that same dish. So, if you go by that definition, this can definitely be considered a casserole. Now I could have added pasta to it (did you know you can cook pasta in the oven?), but that would have also extended my cooking time and my goal here was to have dinner on the table in 30 minutes.
As a bonus, you can also put together a couple of different meals with this Meatball Grinder Casserole recipe! We’re big leftover people here. When my husband and I are in planning mode, we try take one nights’ dinner and re-purpose it in a different way for another night. So naturally, I am always thinking about how I am going to get a second meal from the first one.
You could cook up some pasta either while the casserole is cooking (you’d still have it on the table in 30 minutes!) or for the leftovers, and pile the meatballs on top. There is plenty of sauce with the casserole so you don’t need anything else to finish off the dish, except maybe a little Parmesan cheese.
You could also make a meatball grinder out of it, which is great for lunch, dinner or game day, and is always a big favorite. Who doesn’t love a good meatball sandwich?! I enjoyed this one for lunch. Looks good, doesn’t it?!
Since making this, I picked up some more of the Cooked Perfect Italian Style Beef & Pork Meatballs and I’m planning a meatball soup next! But Cooked Perfect has some other great flavors as well: Korean Style BBQ Beef & Pork Meatballs, Sundried Tomato & Roasted Garlic Chicken Meatballs, and Italian Style with Mozzarella Chicken Meatballs. I’ve already tried the Korean Style BBQ Beef & Pork Meatballs, and they were delicious! Find Cooked Perfect Fresh Meatballs in the refrigerated meat & poultry section. Save $1.00 on Cooked Perfect Fresh Meatballs now!
Are you hungry yet? Let’s start putting this Meatball Grinder Casserole together!
MEATBALL GRINDER CASSEROLE
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
Toss the meatballs with 24 oz of your favorite marinara. It can be homemade or jarred, but if you’re crunched on time, you’re going to want it to be ready to go when you make this recipe. We do usually make our own marinara, but for this, I used a high quality jarred sauce. I will admit to usually having a jar of marinara on hand for dinner emergencies.
Top with 2 cups of a mozzarella and provolone cheese mixture. I usually use 1 1/2 cups mozzarella and 1/4 cup provolone. But feel free to cater to your own taste buds. Asiago or Fontina would work nicely as well. Drizzle a little olive oil on top and sprinkle some dried oregano over the top, if you’d like.
Pop it in the oven for 15 minutes covered, then uncover for 10 minutes or until the casserole starts bubbling.
While the casserole is cooking, chop a couple tablespoons worth of fresh basil and/or parsley to garnish the casserole with.
Look at that cheesy goodness!
OTHER EASY 30 MINUTE MEALS
Now for the recipe!
Meatball Grinder Casserole
This 30 minute Meatball Grinder Casserole is perfect for easy weeknight dinners, and you can easily re-purpose the leftovers into another meal!
Ingredients
- 2 packages Fresh Cooked Perfect Italian Meatballs
- 24 oz good quality Marinara
- 2 cups Mozzarella and Provolone, shredded
- 2 tablespoons basil and/or parsley, chopped
- teaspoon of olive oil (optional)
- sprinkling of dried oregano (optional)
- sprinkling of Parmesan cheese (optional)
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
Toss the meatballs with your favorite marinara.
Top with 2 cups of a mozzarella and provolone cheese mixture.
Drizzle a little olive oil on top and sprinkle some dried oregano over the top if you'd like.
Pop it in the oven for 15 minutes covered, then uncover for 10 minutes or until the casserole starts bubbling.
While the casserole is cooking, chop a couple tablespoons worth of fresh basil and/or parsley to garnish with.
Recipe Notes
For multiple meal options, top pasta with Meatball Grinder Casserole. Or, add meatballs to grinder roll, add a little extra cheese and toast.
| Nutrition Facts | |
|---|---|
| Serving Size | |
| Amount Per Serving | As Served |
| Calories 213kcal Calories from fat 144 | |
| % Daily Value | |
| Total Fat 16g | 25% |
| Saturated Fat 10g | 50% |
| Transfat 0g | |
| Cholesterol 48mg | 16% |
| Sodium 495mg | 21% |
| Carbohydrate 2g | 1% |
| Dietary Fiber 0g | 0% |
| Sugars 1g | |
| Protein 15g | |
Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs:
| Calories | 2000 | |
|---|---|---|
| Total Fat | Less than | 65g |
| Sat Fat | Less than | 25g |
| Cholesterol | Less than | 300mg |
| Sodium | Less than | 2,400mg |
| Total Carbohydrate | 300g | |
| Dietary Fiber | 25g | |
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