Recipe Background
It's hard to imagine "yummy" and "healthy" being in the same sentence, but Healthy Broccoli Cheese Bake makes it happen! A bunch of fresh garden veggies, pan-seared and smothered in melty sharp cheese make up the filling, while the top is blanketed in a crunchy whole-grain bread crust! It's balanced, healthy, vegetarian, and just plain delicious... a lot of cheese and floral broccoli will do that! Healthy Broccoli Cheese Bake will make health nuts and lovers of hearty fare equally happy!
It's hard to imagine "yummy" and "healthy" being in the same sentence, but Healthy Broccoli Cheese Bake makes it happen! A bunch of fresh garden veggies, pan-seared and smothered in melty sharp cheese make up the filling, while the top is blanketed in a crunchy whole-grain bread crust! It's balanced, healthy, vegetarian, and just plain delicious... a lot of cheese and floral broccoli will do that! Healthy Broccoli Cheese Bake will make health nuts and lovers of hearty fare equally happy!
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium onion sliced
- 1 medium red bell pepper sliced
- 8 ounces fresh mushrooms sliced
- 1/2 teaspoon salt divided
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 3 cups low-fat 1% milk warm
- 1/2 cup cheddar cheese shredded
- 1/4 cup Romano cheese shredded, divided
- 7 cups frozen broccoli florets thawed and well-drained (on a paper towel)
- 1 cup fresh whole-grain breadcrumbs
- 1 tablespoon butter cut into bits
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Lightly grease a 2-quart baking dish.
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
- Add the onion, the bell pepper, the mushrooms, 1/4 teaspoon of the salt, and the black pepper to the oil and cook, while stirring frequently, until they begin to brown, about 12-15 minutes.
- Sprinkle the flour over the veggie mixture and cook, while stirring, until it is lightly golden and the flour smell disappears, about 1 minute.
- Add the remaining salt and the milk to the veggie mixture.
- Bring the veggie mixture to a boil and stir until it is smooth and slightly thickens, about 3 minutes.
- Stir the cheddar cheese and 2 tablespoons of the Romano cheese into the veggie mixture.
- Stir the broccoli into the veggie mixture and pour it into the prepared baking dish.
- Toss the breadcrumbs with the remaining Romano cheese and sprinkle over the top of the veggie mixture.
- Dot the bake with the butter.
- Bake the dish, uncovered, until the crumbs are golden and the casserole is bubbling, about 40 minutes.
- Transfer the dish from the oven and allow it to cool for 5 minutes.
- Serve.
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