HOLIDAYS
Three Cheese Broccoli Bake Makes 6-8 servings Ingredients: • 8 cups broccoli florets from about 2-3 heads broccoli • 1 tablespoon kosher or sea salt • 1 plumb garlic clove, peeled and halved • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter • 1 ½ cups half-and-half • 3 large eggs • ¼ cup all-purpose flour • ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese • ½ teaspoon kosher or sea salt • ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper • 3 green onions, chopped • 4 ounces Velveeta, cut into 1-inch cubes • 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese • 1 cup crushed Ritz crackers (about 24 crackers) Directions: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Fill a large pot with very hot water and add salt. Cover, set over high heat, and bring to a boil. When the water reaches a rolling boil, add the broccoli florets, stir, cover with the lid cracked, and return to a boil. Start timing when the water boils: cook for just 2 minutes, then drain and set aside. Rub a 2-quart baking dish generously with the garlic half (this is a trick I picked up while living in Switzerland—the Swiss rub garlic on the inside of fondue pots to impart a delicate garlic flavor), then rub the dish with the butter and set aside. Make the custard: In a large bowl, whisk together the half-and-half, eggs, flour, Parmesan, salt and black pepper. Set aside.
Recipe from Jennifer Brules’ cookbook The New Vegetarian South:105 Inspired Dishes for Everyone
Toss the broccoli with the green onions and layer into the baking dish. Nestle the Velveeta cubs in among the broccoli florets, then whisk the custard again and pour over the broccoli. Scatter the cheddar over the top and finish by pouring the cracker crumbs evenly from edge to edge. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 25 minutes, then uncover and bake for 20 minutes longer (if cracker crumbs start to get too golden, re-cover with foil). Serve hot.
www.LNCurrents.com | NOVEMBER 2020
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