broccoli parmesan gratin

I make at least one vegetable side with every meal. A lot of the time, the effort goes into the main dish meat, and I have no time or inspiration leftover for the side. (We eat a lot of steamed asparagus and steamed broccoli around here.) I saw this recipe in February 2009 Gourmet and wanted to try it. I don't know if it's worth the extra calories for an everyday vegetable side, but it's definitely a good choice for dinner parties.

Grocery list: 1 bunch broccoli, 1 cup whole milk, 1/2 cup cream, 1 cup grated parmesan, 2 eggs, 1 cup bread crumbs, olive oil.



Wash the broccoli and cut into bite-size pieces. Boil for 5 minutes, then drain.



Whisk together the milk, cream, parmesan and eggs, and season with salt and pepper.



Place the broccoli in a baking dish, then pour the milk-cheese mixture over top. In a shallow pan, toss the breadcrumbs with a drizzle of olive oil over medium heat for a few minutes, until they start to toast. Pour over top of the broccoli. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes (the custard should jiggle when the dish is gently moved; if it still acts liquid-y in the middle, it needs to cook a few more minutes). Broil for a few more minutes to get the top as golden as you like.

creamy broccoli soup

Broccoli soup is the perfect comfort food during a cold spell. It's also as (un)healthy as you want to make it, depending on the toppings you add. The actual soup itself couldn't be easier, as most vegetable-cream soups follow the same premise: cook vegetables in stock, add cream, blend with immersion blender, serve. This recipe that I found on Food Network is perfect. If you want to slim it down, substitute whole milk or half-and-half for the heavy cream, and of course use less than the 1/2 pound of cheddar pictured above.

Grocery list: 4 T butter, 1.5 pounds fresh broccoli, 1 large onion, 1 carrot (note, I skipped the carrot since I used the last ones for my stock), 3 T flour, 4 c chicken stock, 1/2 c cream.



Over medium-high heat, melt the butter in a large soup pot. Chop the vegetables, then saute them until the onions are translucent, about 5-6 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.



Sprinkle the flour over the vegetable base, stir and cook for a couple minutes, until the flour starts to turn golden brown.



Pour in the chicken stock (one quart box of the pre-made kind, or make your own), and bring to a boil. Simmer over medium heat until the broccoli is tender, another 15-20 minutes.



Stir the cream into the soup.



Puree the soup with an immersion blender, then do a taste check, adding more salt and/or pepper if necessary. Serve with grated cheddar cheese (and/or bacon, croutons, crackers, etc).