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macaroni & cheese with broccoli

Name: macaroni & cheese with broccoli
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 45 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 12 -ounces whole-wheat macaroni, about 3 cups, uncooked; 1 large broccoli crown, chopped (about 4 cups) or 1 10-ounce box frozen chopped broccoli, thawed; 2 1/2 cups milk, preferably non-fat, divided; 1/4 cup flour; 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard; 3/4 teaspoon salt; 1/4 teaspoon white pepper; 1 1/2 cups shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese (6 ounces); Crumb topping; 3 tablespoons dry breadcrumbs, preferably whole-wheat (see ingredient note*); 3/4 teaspoon paprika; 1/4 teaspoon salt; 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder; 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

Jump To Recipe March 27, 2017 by Katie // 43 Comments »

This delicious baked macaroni & cheese with broccoli is a healthy make-over of the classic casserole. But with its crunchy golden brown breadcrumb topping and uber-creamy cheese sauce you won’t miss a thing. This is a family weeknight dinner favorite and is ready in just 45 minutes!

Macaroni and Cheese with Broccoli | Vegetarian | Whole Grain | Casserole | Kid Friendly | Comfort Food |Healthy Seasonal Recipes | Katie Webster

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I originally shared this recipe on January 11, 2011. I have updated the images and some of the text today.

Welcome! For those of you who are new here, you may want to sign up for my email list, or follow me on instagram to stay in the loop.

For those of us who are committed to eating healthfully, frozen produce is super helpful.

By the end of the week, or if you’re snowed in (yes, that does happen in Vermont in the Spring!) with an empty produce bin, having frozen vegetables handy can mean the difference between a healthy home-cooked meal and fat-laden take-out.

And don’t worry about the nutrition end of it. Did you know that frozen vegetables can actually be more nutritious than fresh? This happens in some cases because they are picked and frozen at the peak of their nutrition.

Here is my cheesy, ooey, gooey Macaroni and Cheese with Broccoli. It is comforting (and healthy) for a mid-week supper. Honestly my family loves it so much they request it for special occasions too, like for their birthday dinners. I even made it one year for Valentine’s Day baked in a heart-shaped baking dish.

With it’s creamy cheesiness, I don’t even think they know how healthy it is. I love that it requires no planning because the ingredients are always on hand.

I usually use a 10-ounce box of frozen chopped broccoli, but a large crown of chopped fresh works well to if you happen to have it. I’ve also made it with edamame, which my kids will gobble up like jellybeans. Try it with whatever vegetable your family will eat.

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Tips for Healthy Homemade Macaroni and Cheese with Broccoli

Prepare first for efficiency

To maximize your time, get all your ducks in a row! Start boiling the water right from the get-go, and get your oven pre-heated.

Since they can take a while to heat-up, if you start that before you start chopping and measuring, you’ll save a bit of time in the end.

Cook the Macaroni

Undercook the pasta in the water. It is going into the oven, so it will keep cooking in the sauce.

Tip For Fresh broccoli

If you’re using fresh broccoli, add it to the cooking pasta at the end.

How to Make Cheese Sauce more healthy

To make the healthier cheese sauce, I use a slurry method. This is different than a roux because it doesn’t require any butter (I like to save my fat calories for cheddar cheese thank you very much!)
To ensure the slurry method works best, make sure you preheat the milk in the skillet.
Then use a little of the milk to mix with flour to make the slurry.
Here I boosted the flavor of the sauce by enhancing the slurry with some Dijon and salt and pepper.

Make The Sauce

Once the milk in the skillet is steaming hot, just whisk in the slurry.
It’s important to keep stirring and whisking at this point to keep the sauce from becoming lumpy.
Pay attention to those corners!

Add the Cheese Off The Heat

Only after it thickens, remove it from the heat, then stir in the cheese. That’s the fool-poroof way of melting the cheese, without causing it to clump or curdle.

Tips For Frozen Broccoli

Note: if you’ve opted to use frozen chopped broccoli, you just add it right into the cheese sauce.

It Will Look Too Saucy

Mix the pasta and sauce, and note, this will seem really saucy at this point, but as it bakes the sauce will absorb into the pasta for that perfect creamy texture.

Crunchy Baked Topping

Then top it with a snazzy breadcrumb mixture which will become all golden and crunchy (arguably the best part of the casserole.)

Since it is already pretty hot, it only needs 15 or 20 minutes in the oven to become bubbly and crusty.

Steps To Make This Baked Macaroni and Cheese with Broccoli

: 1. Chop broccoli.

: 2. Boil macaroni for 4 minutes less than package instructions.

: 3. When the timer goes off, add broccoli and cook for two more minutes.

: 4. Drain the pasta and broccoli

: 5. While the pasta cooks, make the cheese sauce. Whisk 1/2 cup milk, flour, Dijon, 3/4 tsp salt and pepper in a bowl.

: 6. Heat 2 cups of milk in a saucepan and whisk in slurry. Bring to a simmer, whisking often.

: 7. Remove from the heat and add cheese. Whisk until smooth.

: 8. Add the sauce to the pasta and broccoli mixture and stir to combine.

: 9. Stir breadcrumb, paprika, 1/4 teaspoon salt and garlic powder with olive oil in a small bowl until the bread crumbs are evenly moist.

: 10. Transfer the pasta mixture to a greased 2-quart baking dish. Top with the breadcrumbs and bake until golden and bubbling, 15 to 2 minutes.

Thanks for reading! For those of you who are new here, you may want to sign up for my email list, or follow me on instagram to stay in the loop.

Happy Cooking!

~Katie

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