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Simple + Delicious Pizza Hut Cavatini Recipe

This easy Pizza Hut inspired cavatini  is one of our family favorites and soon your whole family will love this easy pasta recipe! It’s the perfect meal for a busy weeknight! This baked pasta dish is my perfect comfort food! 

a pan of Pizza Hut copycat cavatini sits in a large white casserole dish on a table with a wooden spoon dishing ou the first scoop.

When I was growing up one of our family friends routinely brought this hearty dish to our family when someone was sick or in need of a little something extra. It quickly became a family favorite and we added it to our regular dinner rotation.

I actually didn’t know there was a cavatini pasta at Pizza Hut until much later in my life! While copycat recipes abound on the internet this one is family tested and approved for literal years! 

There is so much to love about this copycat Pizza Hut cavatini! 

  1. For starters, it’s pasta casserole. I hardly need to say more. You can use different types of pasta depending what you have in your pantry and is great for using up all the uncooked leftover pasta in the box. 
  2. It is packed with veggies! Mushrooms, peppers, tomatoes (and olives!) And if you want to make your life easier you can use frozen diced onions and peppers and canned or frozen mushrooms! 
  3. It has protein options in both pepperoni and sausage.
  4. Cheesy goodness. 

a bite of cavatini sits on a fork coming up from a white bowl with another bowl of cavatini casserole in the corner with a piece of rustic bread to the side.

What to serve with Cavatini?

Here are some easy sides that go perfectly with Cavatini. 

How to store Cavatini 

Store your cavatini in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It should be good for up to a week. 

 

Can you freeze Cavatini? 

This recipe also freezes great! I like to divide the recipe in half before cooking and freeze half for a quick and easy meal later on. Place your cavatini in a freezer bag and carefully remove all air. 

Then defrost overnight in the refrigerator and then cook as directed or microwave in smaller portions. Or eat cold from the fridge, it’s good that way too! 

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To Make this dish you may need…

Easy Pizza Hut Cavatini Recipe

a pan of Pizza Hut copycat cavatini sits in a large white casserole dish on a table with a wooden spoon dishing ou the first scoop.

Healthy Cavatini

Yield: 8 servings
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes

This healthy cavatini is packed with vegetables and lean protein sources for a comforting and delicious dinner.

Ingredients

  • 3 cups uncooked rotini noodles (Can use whole wheat pasta, chickpea pasta, penne pasta) 
  • 1 pound Italian sausage (Can also be ground turkey sausage or ground beef if you prefer.) 
  • 6 ounces pepperoni (Can be turkey pepperoni.) 
  • 1 large green bell pepper (A yellow pepper or red pepper works great too!) 
  • 4 ounces of fresh chopped mushrooms

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350
Cook pasta according to box directions over medium high heat. Cook pasta to al dente and drain.
Crumble turkey and cook with spices until no pink color remains.
Chop large green pepper, mushrooms and onion.
Add cooked pasta, meat, pepperoni, vegetables, garlic, basil, Italian seasoning, tomato sauce, and tomato sauce into large bowl and stir until evenly distributed.
Spray 9x13 casserole dish pan with cooking spray. Place cavatini mixture in baking dish and sprinkle with a top layer of extra cheese if desired.
Place baking pan in oven and cook for 45 minutes.
Top with parmesan cheese and serve warm with side salad and garlic bread

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1/12 casserole pan
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 260Unsaturated Fat: 0g

Two white bowls filled with cavatini pasta sit on a white kitchen towel with chunks of fresh bread

This Pizza Hut inspired cavatini isn’t just a dish; it’s a cherished tradition in our family, symbolizing warmth, comfort, and togetherness. With its different pasta choices, abundance of veggies, protein-packed options, perfect seasoning, and irresistible cheesy layers, it’s a meal that caters to everyone’s preferences. Whether it’s a busy weeknight or a special occasion, this baked pasta dish has the power to bring smiles to faces and create lasting memories around the dinner table!

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34 Comments

    1. Thanks Anna! It is a quick and easy dinner and I love that I can throw half in the freezer for later or double it easily!

  1. I have never heard of cavatinin before. It sure looks great with all the veggies and cheese… maybe I could just leave out the pasta. HAHA! My husband will love it just the way you offer it!

    1. Good! I ran the numbers through myfitnesspal so if you use different pasta and cheese it may come out slightly different. I was actually surprised how low calorie it is, but it is literally packed with veggies!

    1. My husband doesn’t like them either. I process them to very fine in the food processor and it just kind of blends in with the ground turkey. Shhh… 😀

  2. I think this sounds great- and I could totally make a vegetarian version for my daughter and I 🙂 And I’d probably add extra mushrooms. Just because 😉 Yum!

    1. YES! As I was making I thought that it is easily adaptable for vegetarians! Just leave out the meat and add in more mushrooms or tofu crumbles of some sort.

    1. My food processor is the sneakiest little appliance! It always helps me get veggies past my picky eater husband (or at least where he tolerates them!).

    1. Yes it would be totally great for that! You could cook it before and reheat or take it cold and just microwave it as you go.

  3. This looks delicious and like something my BF would actually eat (he’s so picky!) Well he wouldn’t eat the mushrooms so I’d have to omit those lol. I actually have ground beef so I might give this a whirl tomorrow for dinner!

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