Creamy Broccoli Bake
Broccoli casserole.
This creamy broccoli bake is one of my family’s favorites. I’ve never yet met a child who did not like this vegetable in this casserole. Oh, that’s right; I have one kid who never cared for it – the picky one, but that’s because he doesn’t like mushrooms and not because he doesn’t like the green stuff. [Sorry, kid. I’ve tried for a quarter of a century to get you to like mushrooms.] This recipe is a sure-fire way to get any child to eat those green trees. You know something else I like about it? I can get it ready the day before and pop it in the oven when it’s time to bake.
But first, a confession: I have made this so often that I hardly use a recipe. I usually just dump and sprinkle and it comes out okay. This time, when I decided on a Saturday to serve it for Sunday lunch, I added the cheese before the sauce – and it turned out fine. I didn’t even think about it until I went to type up this recipe. So there you have it: you get to choose whether you add the cheese before or after the sauce!
This recipe says you should cook the frozen broccoli first – but I never do. If you’re using fresh vegetables, you can blanch the broccoli if you’d like, but I don’t.
The how to
Put the broccoli in the bottom of an ungreased casserole dish or pan.
Sprinkle the cheese on top. You can add as much or as little as you’d like. (This is where I got the cheese before the sauce.)
Mix your sauce, which is cream of mushroom soup with milk.
It will seem thick, but as it bakes, the sauce thins. You can always add more milk if you like your sauce runny.
Spread the sauce on top.
Mix your crumb topping, which is just Bisquick and butter (or you can use margarine). I usually use Jiffy Mix instead of Bisquick.
Make the crumbs as clumpy or as fine as you’d like,
Then spread the crumbs on top of the casserole.
Cover the dish, put it in the refrigerator, and forget about it until it’s time to bake. This dish bakes at 400 for 20 minutes or until done. If it goes into the oven at room temperature, twenty minutes will do it. If you’ve had it in the refrigerator overnight, let it warm up before you put it in the oven and be prepared for it to take a little longer for the broccoli to bake.
A few broccoli pointers to help you:
- if you’re using frozen broccoli, give it time to thaw before you put it in the oven, or it will take longer to bake.
- you can double or triple this recipe (which I do all the time), but I recommend using a flat pan, because the broccoli won’t bake as well in a deep dish, and the topping will be spread pretty thin until it gets to the bottom of the dish.
- remember that the broccoli (whether fresh or frozen) will be in the oven, so it doesn’t need a lot of cooking ahead of time – unless you don’t mind mushy broccoli.
Enjoy!
The recipe
Creamy Broccoli Bake
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lb. fresh broccoli OR 2 cups frozen broccoli
- 1 can cream of mushroom soup 10 oz.
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 cup Bisquick baking mix I use Jiffy Mix
- 1/4 cup butter or margarine
Instructions
- Blanche fresh broccoli if you are using fresh
- Put broccoli in ungreased casserole
- Beat soup and milk until smooth and pour over broccoli
- Sprinkle with cheese
- Mix Bisquick and butter until crumbly; spread over casserole
- Bake at 400 for 20 minutes
I first shared this recipe over five years ago. It is still one of my go-to recipes!
