Baked Italian Nachos are the ultimate snack and party appetizer with baguette crisps loaded down with pizza sauce, Farm Rich Mozzarella Sticks, Farm Rich Meatballs, pepperoni, and lots of gooey cheese.
Baked Italian Nachos
Did you know that February is National Snack Food Month? Snack time is the best time, and I’m always on the lookout for our family’s next favorite snack! I’m excited to partner with Farm Rich to share a current snack fave with you, these Baked Italian Nachos.
Our family has family movie nights every week on Sunday evenings. Sometimes we keep our movie snacks basic with popcorn and Farm Rich Jalapeno Peppers. But other nights, we like to up our snack game. Which is what this Baked Italian Nachos recipe is. Next level snack!
To make this recipe, you not only need an abundance of cheese and pizza sauce, but you’ll also need high quality mozzarella sticks and meatballs. And since we don’t always have time to make those ourselves, it’s nice to be able to grab these in a pre-made bag in the freezer section from Farm Rich.
Why We Love Farm Rich
Farm Rich is not only one of our family’s favorite snack brands. It’s one of America’s too! We love that they have so many choices of fun, delicious, and simple snacks, appetizers, and even BBQ.
Some of our favorite Farm Rich products include Mozzarella Sticks, Meatballs, Cheddar Cheese Curds, Breaded Mushrooms, Loaded Potato Skins, and (NEW!) Grilled Cheese Sticks. That’s a lot. But there’s more, and they’re all really good!
With such a variety of products, Farm Rich makes snacking simple and delicious! Plus, any of these products can be enjoyed as fast snacks OR quick meals and are great for get-togethers and family time. Some products can even be microwaved! Talk about super fast snacks!
As a busy mom in charge of a chaotic family schedule, I really appreciate that all of these snacks and foods are quick and easy to prepare, and are made with wholesome, quality ingredients that I feel good about feeding my family.
Now, let’s get to this ultimate snack time recipe!
Why These Baked Italian Nachos Rock!
These Baked Italian Nachos are basically like if pizza and nachos had a baby. Baguette crisps and Farm Rich Mozzarella Sticks are smothered in red sauce and gooey cheese with toppings like Farm Rich Italian Style Meatballs and pepperoni.
What’s in Baked Italian Nachos?
- The Base – the base is what all of those delicious toppings are going to sit on to make these epic nachos. For these Italian nachos, I didn’t want to use tortilla chips, so I went with baguette crisps and Farm Rich Mozzarella Sticks, which are breaded and seasoned to perfection and made with 100% real mozzarella cheese (making them a good source of protein and calcium!).
- Marinara Sauce – all pizza and Italian nachos need red sauce. That’s just a fact!
- The Cheese – You can’t have too much cheese on nachos. It’s impossible. So for these nachos, I loaded them with cheese, three ways. First the Farm Rich Mozzarella Sticks, then with a creamy, zesty garlic Parmesan cheese sauce, and finally topped it with gooey mozzarella that we will melt in the oven!
- The Toppings – There are two categories of toppings: the baked and the fresh. The baked toppings need that extra time in the oven to brown and release their flavors, while the fresh stay cool and are added after baking. The baked toppings include mini pepperoni, the cheese, and Farm Rich Italian Style Meatballs, which are made with hearty ground beef and savory pork (11 grams of protein per serving!) and get oh-so-juicy and browned when cooking the nachos. Once the nachos are baked, I added fresh tomatoes, giardiniera (I’m a Chicago girl. I really had to.), and fresh chopped basil.
You can find all of the Farm Rich products used in this recipe (and lots more!) in the freezer section at Meijer. (And if you’re an Amazon shopper, the Meatballs and Mozzarella Sticks are on there too!)
Ready to get cooking?
How to Make Baked Italian Nachos
Step 1: Get your ingredients ready before you start cooking. Bake Farm Rich Mozzarella Sticks on a baking sheet at 450°F for 10-11, until cooked through.
Warm Farm Rich Italian Meatballs in a microwave safe dish with 1 tablespoon of water in the microwave for 1-2 minutes, until thawed and warm.
Set ingredients aside until ready to assemble, and make sure the oven is preheated to 450°F.
Step 2: Prepare the Garlic Parmesan Sauce. Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic, and saute until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. Stir in cream, and heat until it is steaming.
When mixture is hot, stir in Parmesan. Continue stirring until smooth and creamy. Set sauce aside until assembling Baked Italian Nachos.
Step 3: Start layering Baked Italian Nachos ingredients on a large baking sheet.
Layer baguette crisps, Farm Rich Mozzarella Sticks, marinara sauce, Farm Rich Italian Meatballs, garlic Parmesan sauce, shredded mozzarella, and mini pepperoni.
Step 4: Bake at 450°F for about 7-10 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly.
Step 5: When nachos are done baking, add fresh toppings such as giardiniera, chopped tomatoes, and fresh basil.
Serve warm and enjoy!
Pro Tips
- For easy clean-up, line your baking sheet before assembling your nachos!
- I like to cook my Farm Rich Mozzarella Sticks in my air fryer. To cook them in the air fryer for this recipe instead of baking, place the full package of Mozzarella Sticks in the basket of the air fryer. Cook at 360°F for about 10 minutes, until cooked through.
- Customize it! Just like a pizza, you can customize these nachos to your taste preferences. You can add more or less of anything in the ingredient list, or any topping of your choosing. Try red bell peppers, pepperoncinis, olives, extra Parmesan, mushrooms, bacon, or even pineapple!
- Make your own baguette crisps, if you can’t find them at the store! Slice a baguette into 1/4-inch slices. Place on a baking sheet. Brush with olive oil and season with salt. Bake at 350°F for about 10 minutes until golden and crispy.
Baked Italian Nachos
Ingredients
Garlic Parmesan Sauce
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Italian Nachos
- 1 package (9 ounces) baguette crisps
- 1 package (24 ounces) Farm Rich Mozzarella Sticks
- 1.5 cups marinara sauce (red sauce)
- 1 package (26 ounces) Farm Rich Italian Meatballs
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella
- 1/4 cup mini pepperonis
- 1/4 cup giardiniera
- 1 Roma tomato diced
- 1 tablespoon fresh chopped basil
Instructions
Before Getting Started
- Bake Farm Rich Mozzarella Sticks according to package instructions. (Bake at 450°F for 10-11 minutes until cooked through). Set aside.
- Warm meatballs up so that they’re not frozen. Place them in a microwave-safe dish for about 1.5 minutes, or until warm. (They’ll get cooked more in the nachos!). Set aside.
- Preheat oven to 450°F.
Garlic Parmesan Sauce
- In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.
- When butter is melted, add garlic. Saute until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.
- Pour in cream, and stir to combine. Heat to steaming, but not boiling.
- When cream mixture is hot, add grated Parmesan. Stir until smooth.Set aside until assembling nachos.
Assembling Baked Italian Nachos
- Spread baguette crisps in a layer on a large baking sheet.
- Place Farm Rich Mozzarella Sticks on top of baguette crisps.
- Drizzle red sauce over baguette crisps and mozzarella sticks.
- Add Farm Rich Italian Meatballs on top.
- Drizzle prepared Garlic Parmesan sauce on top.
- Top with shredded mozzarella and mini pepperoni.
- Bake at 450°F for about 7-10 minutes, until cheese is melted and bubbly and nachos are cooked through.
- When done baking, add additional toppings such as giardiniera, tomatoes, and fresh chopped basil.
- Serve immediately while still warm.
Notes
- For easy clean-up, line your baking sheet before assembling your nachos!
- I like to cook my Farm Rich Mozzarella Sticks in my air fryer. To cook them in the air fryer for this recipe instead of baking, place the full package of mozzarella sticks in the basket of the air fryer. Cook at 360°F for about 10 minutes, until cooked through.
- Customize it! Just like a pizza, you can customize these nachos to your taste preferences. You can add more or less of anything in the ingredient list, or any topping of your choosing. Try red bell peppers, pepperoncinis, olives, extra Parmesan, mushrooms, bacon, or even pineapple!
- Make your own baguette crisps, if you can’t find them at the store! Slice a baguette into 1/4-inch slices. Place on a baking sheet. Brush with olive oil and season with salt. Bake at 350°F for about 10 minutes until golden and crispy.
Nutrition
WOW- this is a fantastic recipe! I love all the tips you included it really helped while making them, I appreciate it!
So glad to help! I hope you loved it!
Whoa–these are so over the top! Definitely a show stopper for feeding a crowd!! I have to say I corner all the mozzarella sticks myself. 🙂
Haha. My oldest did that! He’s like “I’m full.” Then I catch him sneaking more mozzarella sticks off the tray! Lol
Whoa. These are my kind of nachos!! Talk about a heck of a way to celebrate national snack food month!
Just when I thought nachos couldn’t get any more delicious! haha I love this idea!
I know, right? It’s like all of my favorite things at once!
This recipe has all our favorite things! This will fly off our kitchen table, for sure – delish!
Yes, my kids love it, for sure!
That is a party-worthy nacho platter if I ever saw one! Looks delicious!!
I agree! It’s definitely yummy!
These were so so yummy last night!! Love the mozzarella sticks and meatballs!? Yes, please!!!