Broccoli-Cauliflower Casserole
My sister made this for a family dinner several years ago. It was so good that I asked for the recipe.
My sister made this for a family dinner several years ago. It was so good that I asked for the recipe.
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons butter melted
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 3 tablespoons parmesan cheese grated
- 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 1/4 cups milk
- 1 pound broccoli florets
- 1 head cauliflower chopped
- 6 oz cream cheese, softened
- 3/4 cup bread crumbs
- Carbohydrate 35.3262010853446 g
- Cholesterol 73.5953087100762 mg
- Fat 27.4382676815858 g
- Fiber 5.93172156515069 g
- Protein 10.7720838706034 g
- Saturated Fat 15.8804008546748 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (276g)
- Sodium 864.061921198134 mg
- Sugar 29.3944795201939 g
- Trans Fat 3.02370974310518 g
- Calories 418 calories
Step-by-step
- Coat a medium casserole dish with cooking spray and set aside.
- Heat oven to 350.
- Steam vegetables until crisp tender and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking process. Cut vegetables into bite size pieces. Set aside.
- In a large frying pan melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until tender. Stir in flour, salt, garlic powder and pepper. Slowly add milk, whisking constantly. Cook while whisking until mixture becomes thickened and bubbly. Add cream cheese and stir until just melted. Pour over vegetables and toss well to coat evenly.
- Pour mixture into prepared casserole dish.
- Combine bread crumbs, parmesan cheese and 2 tablespoons melted butter. Sprinkle on top of casserole and place in the oven. bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until topping is nicely browned and mixture is bubbly.
Golden butter-toasted breadcrumbs shatter under the prong of a fork, yielding to a dense, bubbling matrix of softened brassicas and velvety cheese sauce. Understanding the physics of moisture control dictates the success of this preparation from start to finish. Steaming the broccoli florets and cauliflower head until merely crisp-tender prevents waterlogging; plunging them into cold water immediately halts residual thermal transfer, locking in vibrant chlorophyll and preventing cell walls from collapsing into mush. Whisking cold milk gradually into a cooked butter-and-flour roux disperses the starch granules evenly, preventing lumps while gelatinizing starches to build body. Softened cream cheese incorporated off the direct heat melts smoothly into the bechamel without breaking its fat emulsion.
Judging Doneness Without Instruments
Visual and auditory cues replace thermometers entirely when assessing baking progress at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Edges bubble with thick, sluggish viscosity rather than watery spatter, indicating that excess moisture has evaporated and starches have fully set. Parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs combined with melted butter form a deep amber crust after 25 to 30 minutes in the heat. Piercing the center with a knife reveals no resistance through the vegetable stems, confirming uniform internal heat penetration.Balancing the Plate
Acidic proteins such as roast lemon-garlic chicken or simple pan-seared pork chops complement the dense dairy fat and earthy sulfur notes of cruciferous vegetables. Rich gratins benefit significantly from bright contrasts on the plate to cut through the coating richness of cream cheese and butter.
