Easy, Creamy, Baked Broccoli Macaroni and Cheese Your Kids Will Love!
When I say that macaroni and cheese is my favorite food, I mean it. If it’s on the menu, even as a side or on the kids’ menu, my mouth waters, and I have to order it. So, when I say that this broccoli macaroni and cheese is worth the time and effort, I mean it.
I’m the woman who couldn’t eat anything but *specifically* Annie’s Homegrown macaroni and cheese for the first 16 weeks of my pregnancy, and I’m the woman who makes microwave mac and cheese any time there’s a box of elbow macaroni in the pantry.
So, when it came to finding the absolute best macaroni and cheese recipe out there, you should know that I spent a good part of my adult years working on finding and perfecting it.
That is how we ended up here, friends. And yes, I added in some broccoli. Why? Because as perfect as this macaroni and cheese recipe is, I feel like a bad mom if I don’t serve some veggies with it. And honestly, broccoli and cheese is its own basic food group.
Béchamel and the Foot in My Mouth
Don’t you love it when you make a sweeping statement about a certain food and almost immediately find the counterargument? Well, if you look back to my post on French Onion Mac and Cheese, you’ll remember that I made an ignorant carte blanche statement about hating béchamel based sauces.
I’m throwing myself under the bus a little bit because I have in no uncertain terms spoken out about hating macaroni and cheese recipes that have flour in the base. Not only that, I’ve expressed my hatred for mac that has spent time in the oven getting dry and hard.
So, here I am, retracting that statement because I was clearly just eating poorly made béchamels. Maybe the 1:1 ratio just wasn’t doing it for me. Who knows? But I do know that, after lots of testing, I have a better handle on cheese sauce.
The Cheese Sauce You Never Knew You Needed
It starts with a 1:2 fat to flour ratio roux. For someone who claimed to be able to always taste the flour, this sure was a surprise. Stick with me.
So, I melted one tablespoon of butter to start. Before the flour even goes in, I sautéed minced onion with the butter. Onions and butter are always a fragrant mood booster. I love it!
Fun fact, for once, I actually practiced some proper knife skills and really minced. I usually do a rough chop and pretend it’s minced.
Keep the onions moving in the butter until they’ve started to turn golden. I’d say this takes about 2 minutes, but a minute longer won’t hurt. Then, you will sprinkle the flour evenly over the whole pan.
I whisked this together and let the flour cook in for another 2 minutes. Trust your instincts on this one. I like a longer cooked roux than some people, so if you’re antsy after 1 minute, go with it. Once I felt that the roux was cooked enough, I slowly drizzled in the chicken broth while whisking. Then I slowly drizzled in the milk while whisking.
Going Slow is the Key to Successful Sauces
I’ve made gravy before where I poured in the broth and then started whisking. It came out clumpy every time. Go slow and whisk to keep it smooth.
Then, you’ll bring the sauce to a simmer for 5 minutes. It’s not that hard… I’m just writing this all out because I’ve literally messed it up a hundred times before and blamed roux and béchamel every time. Hopefully, this will help you.
So, the final step is to turn off the heat, dump in the cheese, and whisk it until it’s smooth. You can season with salt and pepper if you want.
Assembling Broccoli Macaroni and Cheese
There are couple tips that are probably no-brainers, but I’m going to write them up anyways.
First, boil your pasta as you’re cooking your sauce. The sauce is going to take at least 10 minutes to cook. So, start boiling your water, and then gather your ingredients.
I went so far as to set up a whole mise en place situation, everything measured out and in cute little cups ready to grab and toss in.
Then, you can start melting your butter, and pour the pasta into the boiling water at the same time. Ultimately, it’s just a bit of a time saver.
Second, it’s totally fine to use frozen broccoli. What I found was that Aldi’s frozen broccoli already comes in 12-ounce bags, so why bother weighing a fresh head of the stuff and dismantling it myself? Nuke it for 3 minutes so it’s mostly cooked just before you add in your cheese.
Third, use cheese you like! I had planned to stick to cheddar alone. However, I realized that we’ve put cheddar on an awful lot of things lately. What I had on hand was cheddar, colby jack, parmesan, and mozzarella. It turned out great, so I’m sharing that combo with you.
However, you can definitely use whatever cheese you have on hand so long as it’s a low-moisture, block-kind of cheese (pepper jack, colby, havarti, muenster, provolone, etc.). I probably wouldn’t bother with feta, queso fresco, or even brie for this. Don’t get so fancy you mess with the texture.
That’s it for Broccoli Macaroni and Cheese… How Easy!
It’s a bit drawn out, but that’s what you need to know to put together a bonkers tasty dish of broccoli macaroni and cheese. There’s nothing complicated about it. No crazy spices or secret ingredients. You can easily customize it to your own tastes.
So, comment below and let me know if you’re up to trying this recipe. I’d love to hear from anyone else who may have struggled with béchamel before. And don’t forget to subscribe for freebies and updates!
Broccoli Macaroni and Cheese
Equipment
- Silicon whisk
- Pasta strainer
- Casserole Dish
Ingredients
- 2 cups elbow pasta dry
- 1 Tbsp unsalted butter
- ¼ cup yellow onion minced
- 2 Tbsp all purpose flour
- ½ cup low sodium chicken broth
- 1 cup milk
- ½ cup cheddar shredded
- ½ cup colby jack shredded
- ¼ cup parmesan shredded
- ¼ cup mozzarella shredded
- 12 oz frozen broccoli florets
- cooking spray
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Cook the Pasta
- Boil salted water, and add in the macaroni. Cook until al dente, and drain. Do not rinse.
Cook the Broccoli
- Microwave the broccoli for about 3 minutes until mostly warm. Some cold spots are fine.
Four Cheese Broccoli Mac
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly coat a 1 quart casserole with cooking spray.
- Melt butter in a skillet with high sides. Add in minced onions, and stir until nearly golden (about 2 to 3 minutes).
- Sprinkle flour over onions and whisk to incorporate. Cook an additional 1 to 2 minutes.
- Slowly drizzle in chicken broth and milk while continuing to whisk. Bring to simmer for 5 minutes to thicken.
- Reserve ¼ cup of cheese mix to sprinkle on top. Turn off the heat and add cheese. Whisk until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.
- Combine cooked macaroni, broccoli, and cheese sauce in the oiled casserole dish. Sprinkle reserved cheese mix on top, and lightly spritz with a little cooking spray.
- Bake for 15 minutes. Turn the oven to Low Broil for 3 minutes until the cheese on top begins to brown. Remove and let it cool for 10 minutes before serving.
