Kids don’t like it because it’s green and looks gross. In fact, it is a very good vegetable that kids should eat all time. Thanks to these delicious recipes we found on Bon Appetit, Recipe for Living, Spoonful, My Recipes, and Babble, you can be sure your kids will eat broccoli.
1. Parmesan Bread Pudding with Broccoli Rabe and Pancetta
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 medium bunch broccoli rabe (rapini), trimmed, cut into 1/2-inch pieces t
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt plus more
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper plus more
- 6 large eggs
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk
- 1/2 pound country-style white bread, cut into 1-inch pieces (about 8 cups)
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan
- 6 thin slices pancetta (Italian bacon)
Directions
Preheat oven to 350°. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and red pepper flakes. Stir until garlic is softened, about 30 seconds. Add broccoli rabe; sea-son with salt and pepper. Cook, tossing, until wilted, about 2 minutes; let cool slightly.
Meanwhile, whisk eggs, milk, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1/2 teaspoons pepper in a large bowl to blend. Add broccoli rabe mixture, bread, and 1/2 cup Parmesan; toss to combine. Transfer to a 1-1/2-qt. baking dish. Top with pancetta and remaining 2 tablespoons Parmesan.
Bake pudding until puffed, browned in spots, and set in the center, 45-55 minutes.
2. Broccoli Cheese Soup
Ingredients
- 1 12-oz. can milk
- 1 15-oz. can chicken broth
- 2 C. heavy whipping cream
- 1-2 lbs. fresh broccoli, cooked
- fresh parsley
- 1/4 tsp. white pepper
- 20 oz. pkg. Velveeta cheese, cut into large chunks
- 1 Tbs. butter
- 4 Tbs. flour
- 1 cube chicken bouillon
- pepper
- seasoned salt
Directions
Boil broccoli with fresh parsley, pepper and seasoning salt until cooked. Cool and cut pieces in half. Melt butter over low flame, add flour, stirring quickly using wooden spoon. Gradually add chicken broth, stir, add milk and heavy whipping cream and stir. Bring mixture to a boil and let thicken. Add chunks of Velveeta cheese and continue stirring over low flames until cheese is melted. Bring to a boil over low flames.
3. Broccoli, Ham, and Cheese Omelet
Ingredients
- Several broccoli florets
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon water
- Pinch of salt
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup grated sharp Cheddar cheese
- 1/4 cup chopped ham
Directions
Wash the broccoli florets and cut them into bite-size pieces. Place them in a small saucepan and add just enough water to cover the bottom of the pan. Cover the pan tightly and heat the broccoli over high heat, steaming it for 2 to 3 minutes, until crisp-tender. Drain the florets in a colander, being careful to avoid the steam, then set them aside to cool.
Crack the eggs into a small bowl. The trick is to achieve as clean a break as possible by striking the egg against the bowl’s rim with just the right amount of force. Too little, and you’ll end up with small shell fragments; too much, and you’ll smash the entire shell. If you happen to get any shell fragments in the bowl, use a clean teaspoon to remove them.
Add the water and salt to the eggs and use a fork to beat the mixture just until blended. Now, before you do anything else, get the rest of your breakfast ready (pour your orange juice, put your bread in the toaster, and so forth), because an omelet cooks in 2 minutes or less from start to finish.
Put your pan on a front burner with the heat set at slightly higher than medium. If you’re right-handed, point the handle toward your left side; if you’re left-handed, point it toward your right. Let the pan heat for 2 to 3 minutes so that it gets fairly hot. Put a tablespoon-size pat of butter in the middle of the pan and let it melt. If the butter immediately starts to sizzle and smoke, your pan is too hot. Remove it from the heat to cool for a minute or so before proceeding. Tilt the pan to spread the melting butter over the entire bottom.
Pour the beaten eggs into the prepared pan and wait a few seconds for the bottom of the eggs to cook just a little. Then use a wooden spoon or spatula to start gently pushing the eggs away from the edge of the pan toward the center. As you do so, tilt the pan so that uncooked egg runs into the empty spot you’ve created. Work your way around the edge in this fashion until the egg is no longer runny.
Using the back of a wooden spoon or spatula, spread any remaining uncooked egg across the surface so that it will continue to cook evenly.
When the surface of your omelet looks just a little undercooked, it’s time to add your fillings (the egg will finish cooking as you complete the next 2 steps). Arrange the broccoli over the half of the omelet farthest from you. Sprinkle the cheese and the ham over the broccoli. Holding the pan handle with one hand, slide a spatula under the plain half of the omelet and fold it over the filling in one steady motion.
Using an underhand grip, tilt up the pan handle and slide the omelet out of the pan and onto your plate. Bon appétit!
4. Broccoli and Cheddar Mini Quiches
Ingredients
- 2 cups broccoli florets
- 1 cup milk (do not use skim)
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 large eggs plus 2 large egg yolks
- 1 cup grated Cheddar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Directions
Preheat oven to 350°F and line a large rimmed baking sheet with foil. Grease 8 cups in a 12-cup muffin tin and set aside. Pour 1 inch of water into a large saucepan and put in a steamer basket. Place broccoli in steamer basket, cover pot, turn heat to high and let cook until broccoli is just tender, 5 to 6 minutes. Let broccoli cool slightly, then chop into small pieces.
In a medium bowl, whisk together milk, cream, eggs and egg yolks. Stir in cheese, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Add chopped broccoli. Put muffin tin on baking sheet, then ladle egg mixture into prepared muffin cups, filling each cup. Bake until lightly browned and no longer jiggly in center, about 25 minutes. Let cool slightly, then run a knife around each quiche. Put a clean baking sheet on top of muffin pan and invert to unmold quiches. Serve warm or at room temperature.
5. Broccoli and Double Cheese Calzones
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups broccoli florets
- 1 large clove garlic, minced
- 2/3 cup ricotta
- 4 ounces mozzarella, coarsely grated (1 cup)
- 1 large egg yolk
- Salt and pepper
- 1 pound frozen pizza dough, thawed
- 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
Directions
Preheat oven to 450°F. Bring 1 inch of water to a boil in a small pot. Place broccoli in a steamer basket, place steamer basket in pot, cover and steam until tender, 4 to 5 minutes. Let cool slightly, coarsely chop, and place in a medium-size bowl. Stir in garlic, ricotta, mozzarella and egg yolk; season with salt and pepper.
Divide pizza dough into 4 portions and use a rolling pin to roll each into an 8-inch circle. Place a quarter of broccoli mixture in center of a round, fold dough in half, and then seal by rolling edges together toward center and crimping. Using a sharp knife, cut two small slits in top of calzone to let steam escape. Repeat with remaining dough and broccoli mixture. Brush calzones with olive oil.
Mist a large, rimmed baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray. Place calzones on baking sheet and bake in center of oven until golden and risen, 13 to 15 minutes. Serve immediately, with warm tomato sauce on the side for dipping, if desired.
6. Broccoli and Potato Pancakes
Ingredients
- 2 Yukon potatoes, washed and cut into 2” chunks
- 2 cups shredded raw broccoli (I did this in my food processor)
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup finely diced onions
- 1/2 tablespoon thyme diced
- 1/2 teaspoon marjoram leaves diced
- lots of olive oil
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
Directions
Put the potatoes into a medium saucepan. Fill halfway with cold water, add some salt, and bring to a boil. Simmer the potatoes for 6-ish minutes; take them out when they are tender and easily pierced with a fork. Mash the warm potatoes in a bowl and add the shredded broccoli, eggs, onions, salt, and herbs. Stir everything together.
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add a tablespoon of olive oil. You want the pan to be as hot as it can be without smoking–it may take a while to find this point. Roll 1/4 cup of the potato broccoli mixture into a ball, flatten into a disc, and fry. The cakes should take about 4-5 minutes a side. They can get a bit crumbly here, so make sure to continue adding oil to the pan as you cook, and be careful when you flip them. Remove the cakes from heat, sprinkle with Parmesan, and keep in a warm oven until you are ready to serve.
7. Broccoli Pesto
Ingredients
- 1 small head broccoli, separated into florets and the trunk chopped into chunks
- 1/4 cup (ish) olive oil, plus more for roasting broccoli
- a small handful of fresh basil
- 1 small garlic clove
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
- pinch salt
Directions
Preheat the oven to 450F. On a large rimmed baking sheet, spread out the broccoli and drizzle with olive oil. Toss about with your hands to coat the broccoli with oil. Roast for 10-15 minutes, flipping once, until golden on the edges. Set aside to cool slightly.
In the bowl of a food processor, pulse the broccoli (scrape any oil left on the bottom of the baking sheet in as well), basil, garlic, Parmesan cheese and salt until well mulched. With the motor running, pour the olive oil in in a thin stream. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add more if it needs it to achieve a pesto-like consistency. Makes about 1 1/2 cups.
8. Broccoli Pizza
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 lb pizza dough
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 3/4 lb provolone cheese, sliced (mild)
- 12 ounces broccoli florets (I use Broccoli Wokly whole 12 oz. bag steamed)
- 1/3 cup ricotta cheese
- 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
- garlic powder
- salt
- oregano
Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Roll out dough. Coat pizza pan with the olive oil and spread out rolled dough evenly to all edges of pan. Sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese. Top with sliced provolone then place broccoli florets (already steamed) on top of provolone. Using two teaspoons, spoon about 3/4 teaspoonful size spoonfuls of ricotta sporadically around the broccoli areas in empty spots. Season whole pizza with salt, oregano & garlic powder to taste then sprinkle the shredded mozzarella evenly all over pizza. Bake for 12-18 minutes or until crust just golden brown. Slice & serve.
9. Broccoli and Cheese Stuffed Baked Potatoes
Ingredients
- 8 lg. baking potatoes
- 2 Tbs. olive oil
- 3/4 lb. broccoli florets (5 C.)
- 1 lg. onion, finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 C. grated low-fat cheddar cheese
- 1/2 C. sour cream
- 1/4 C. milk
- salt and pepper
Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Rub potatoes with 1 Tbs. oil; pierce with a knife. Bake until tender, 1 hour and 30 minutes. Steam broccoli until tender, 5 minutes. Drain; rinse. Pat dry and roughly chop. In a skillet over low heat, warm 1 Tbs. oil. Sauté onion until soft, 10 minutes. Add garlic; cook 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Let potatoes rest until cool enough to handle. Set oven to 350 degrees. Cut top 1/4-inch off potato. Scoop out flesh. Mash potato flesh. Mix with remaining ingredients. Fill potato shells with mixture; bake 30 minutes.
10. Mac and Cheese with Chicken and Broccoli
Ingredients
- 1 pound skinless boneless chicken breasts
- Olive oil (for brushing)
- 2 heads of broccoli, cut into florets (about 5 cups)
- 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 4 cups whipping cream
- 1 cup grated Fontina cheese (about 4 ounces)
- 1 cup grated cheddar cheese (about 4 ounces)
- 1 pound pasta shells, freshly cooked
- 1/2 bunch fresh chives, chopped
Directions
Prepare barbecue (medium heat). Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Brush both sides with olive oil. Grill until cooked through, about 6 minutes per side. Dice chicken and set aside. Cook broccoli in medium pot of boiling salted water until crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Set aside.
Melt butter in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Gradually mix in cream. Bring to boil, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add both cheeses and stir until sauce is smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add pasta, chicken, and broccoli to sauce; mix well. Garnish with chives and serve.
