by Betsy Kline
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette On the fence about broccoli? You know it's good for you but you can't quite bring yourself to chomp down on those unadorned, green cruciferous stalks?
Maybe all you need is to doctor it up a bit as a cheesy hot casserole, i.e., today's Broccoli White Cheddar Pie. Condensed cream of celery soup serves as the sauce, enveloping crunchy bits of broccoli with a meltingly good buttery breadcrumb crust.
Because this casserole is very rich on its own merits (that's a lot of cheese), consider serving it with plain roasted poultry or grilled meats. And listen to the compliments roll. It reheats well, too.
Broccoli White Cheddar Pie
From The Soup Mix Gourmet, by Diane Phillips.
Ingredients:
2 Tbs. butter
1 cupped chopped onion
4 cups broccoli florets (smaller florets cook more quickly)
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 can condensed cream of celery soup
2 cups grated sharp white Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
2 Tbs. butter, melted
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 1 1/2-quart casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray.
Melt the butter in a 10-inch saute pan over medium heat and cook the onion, stirring, until softened but not browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the broccoli, cover the saute pan and cook the broccoli until it is crisp-tender, about 4 minutes. Let cool slightly.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the mayonnaise, soup and cheese. Stir in the broccoli mixture. Pour the contents of the bowl into the prepared casserole dish.
In a small mixing bowl, combine the breadcrumbs and melted butter and sprinkle the breadcrumbs on top of the casserole. Bake the casserole until it is bubbling and the breadcrumbs are golden brown, about 35 minutes.
Yield: 8 servings
(For news and information about Pittsburgh visit www.post-gazette.com. Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service.)
Resources The Soup Mix Gourmet
by Diane Phillips (ISBN: 1558322094)
375 short-cut recipes using dry and canned soups to cook up everything from delicious dips and sumptuous salads to hearty pot roasts and homey casseroles.
(Harvard Common Press, October 2001)
Order this
title.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette newspaper
It contains news and information about Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
34 Blvd. of the Allies
Pittsburgh, PA 15222
Phone: 412-263-1100
Website:
www.post-gazette.com
)
