Community Pick
Delicious Blue Cheese Broccoli Casserole
"This dish has been served every year at my holiday dinner table, I double the recipe and sometimes even triple depending on how many people I have at my table, there is never anything left and I always receive rave reviews all around! --- two small cloves fresh minced garlic may also be added in and sauteed for one minute in butter before adding in the flour--- you will also find this recipe on my food blog http://kittencalskitchen.com/2009/09/15/blue-cheese-broccoli-bake/"
photo by limeandspoontt
- Ready In:
- 50mins
- Ingredients:
- 9
- Serves:
-
4-5
ingredients
- 4 cups fresh broccoli florets, chopped
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 1⁄2 cup blue cheese, crumbled (for a milder blue cheese flavor reduce to 1/4 cup)
- 1 cup milk or 1 cup half-and-half
- fresh ground black pepper (optional and to taste)
- 1 1⁄2 cups Ritz cracker crumbs
- 6 tablespoons butter, melted
directions
- Set oven to 350°F.
- Grease a medium casserole dish.
- Steam broccoli florets until firm-tender (about 2-3 minutes) drain well then pat dry with paper towels.
- In a large saucepan melt 2 tbsp butter over med-low heat; add in flour and stir for 1 minute.
- Add cream cheese, blue cheese and milk; stir over low heat until melted and smooth, then add/stir in broccoli.
- Mix 6 tbsp melted butter with the cracker crumbs until well combined.
- Stir in 1 cup cracker mixture into the broccoli mixture.
- Season with black pepper if desired.
- Pour mixture into a casserole dish.
- Cover with foil or a lid and bake for 15 minutes.
- Remove from oven then sprinkle the top with remaining cracker crumbs.
- Return to oven and bake uncovered for another 15 minutes.
- Allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving.
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Reviews
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How do you improve upon perfection? You can't! All I can do is offer a tip to getting there easier. For the Ritz cracker crumbs -- 1 and 1/2 cups of crumbs is exactly one tube of Ritz crackers. Just squeeze the package with your hands and voila -- instant crumbs. Excellent dish! Thanks. -
Served this with a standing rib roast, a cranberry-pomegranate pork tenderloin, Kittencal's Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes, and a cranberry pecan spinach salad for Christmas Dinner. Outstanding. The blue cheese complemented the other dishes perfectly and was not overpowering for those who think they do not like blue cheese. The blue cheese adds just enough flavor interest to this dish. I did use bread crumbs instead of crackers, a personal preference. Also, I made the dish the day before, and then baked it just prior to serving. (I think I pulled it out of the fridge a bit before baking to let it start coming to room temp.) Our guests were none the wiser, so for those planning a big meal, add this to your list of make ahead sides. I have since made this a second time using Parmesean cheese instead of blue, as I am taking it to an Italian themed dinner party. After a taste (how could I resist?), I really like the Parmasean, too. -
this was seriously AMAZING. my 5-year old son who I have a hard time feeding veggies said "Mommy, can you make like 10 batches of this next week!" I thought that was so cute. & my husband said wow, this is seriously "happy" food. we served with Broiled salmon, delish
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This is delicious! I have made it twice. 4 Stars because I made a few changes. Maybe the people who didn't like it are not die hard blue cheese fans. Tweaks: 1) Used panko, melted butter and a little grated parm for the gratin but didn't stir crumbs into the broccoli mixture. 2) Used just 1 Tbsp flour in the cream sauce. 3) Added a bit more blue cheese. Also, because I'm making it ahead, I slightly undercooked the broccoli and refreshed it in cold water to prevent mushiness. And I'll add the crumbs just before going into the oven. -
Sorry this recipe is gross. Broccoli was utter mush. I don't think you need to steam it before cooking. The blue cheese just doesn't pair well with broccoli at all. The end result is a blandness fighting with over powering blue cheese. I cooked this for a holiday dinner and noticed people didn't eat much or they artfully hid theirs under buns. Surprising all the rave reviews.
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Tweaks
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Delicious!! Instead of 4 cups of broccoli, I used only 2 cups and added in 2 cups of fresh baby spinach. -
My mom made this, but instead of cracker crumb topping, she used day old bread, rolled in melted butter. Magnifique!
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This was okay. I LOVE blue cheese and wanted to make this into a full meal so I added some diced up chicken. I didn't have the ritz crackers for the topping to I used panko instead. I would probably consider making it again but as a side and not as a meal. Thank you for the idea though! It most definitely satisfied my craving for blue cheese! -
Dh, who loves blue cheese, said it was good but would be better with a little more salt and french fried onions instead of the cracker topping. Something that would be crispier. I did use a modge-podge of crackers left over from a party: Ritz, Chicken in a Biscuit and Wheat Thins, and this made for a delightfully flavorful topping, just not crispy enough. I don't love blue cheese but I did think it was good, if a bit rich. I think I'll play with it a little and see what I can come up with. I do think it would be nice at Easter or Thanksgiving, alongside something sweet or savory, like Ham or cranberry sauce. -
Served this with a standing rib roast, a cranberry-pomegranate pork tenderloin, Kittencal's Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes, and a cranberry pecan spinach salad for Christmas Dinner. Outstanding. The blue cheese complemented the other dishes perfectly and was not overpowering for those who think they do not like blue cheese. The blue cheese adds just enough flavor interest to this dish. I did use bread crumbs instead of crackers, a personal preference. Also, I made the dish the day before, and then baked it just prior to serving. (I think I pulled it out of the fridge a bit before baking to let it start coming to room temp.) Our guests were none the wiser, so for those planning a big meal, add this to your list of make ahead sides. I have since made this a second time using Parmesean cheese instead of blue, as I am taking it to an Italian themed dinner party. After a taste (how could I resist?), I really like the Parmasean, too.
see 2 more tweaks
