This easy cheesy broccoli casserole recipe can be served with a holiday dinner or next to pork chops.
Broccoli florets are tossed in an easy cheese sauce, sprinkled with a buttery cracker topping, and baked until browned and bubbly!
What You’ll Need For This Broccoli Casserole
- Broccoli: You can use either fresh or frozen broccoli florets. Fresh has a more tender, crisp texture, while frozen will make a softer casserole.
- Flour/Butter: These create a roux that will thicken the sauce.
- Cheese: I use sharp cheddar cheese and parmesan cheese for the best flavor. If using other types of cheese, choose one with a bold flavor to flavor the sauce.
- Other sauce ingredients: Dry mustard is a great addition to cheese sauce—it can be replaced with a dash of Worcestershire or Dijon mustard.
- Crumb Topping: Buttery round crackers (like Ritz crackers) can be replaced with any variety of crackers or even potato chips. If replacing crackers with breadcrumbs or Panko, add extra butter to the topping.
Variations
- You can swap in other veggies (like cauliflower) for some of the broccoli.
- Add in ham or leftover roast chicken or roast turkey to make this a hearty main dish.
How to Make Broccoli Casserole
Skip the mushroom soup and mayonnaise—the homemade cheese sauce is easy to make and tastes so much better!
- Prep: Boil or steam broccoli until tender-crisp and prep the cheese sauce (full recipe below)
- Assemble: Toss the cheese sauce and broccoli together in the casserole dish and top with buttery crumbs.
- Bake: Bake until golden and bubbly.
Broccoli Notes
Simmer or steam broccoli just until tender-crisp as it will cook more in the oven. If using frozen broccoli, thaw it first.
Drain both fresh or frozen florets very well to keep the sauce from getting watery.
How To Make Ahead of Time
This casserole is perfect for Thanksgiving or Easter since it can be made ahead of time. Prepare as directed, keeping the topping in a separate container. Cover and refrigerate for up to 48 hours.
To Bake: Remove from the fridge 30 minutes before baking. Bake for 15 minutes and stir. Add crumb mixture and bake for 20 to 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly.
Leftovers
To reheat broccoli casserole, cover it with aluminum foil and bake it in the oven at 350°F. Or reheat in the microwave until heated through; the crumbs won’t be as crisp, but they will still be deliciously cheesy.
To freeze, let it cool, then cover it tightly or place it in an airtight container. It’s best to freeze it before baking, but you can also freeze it afterward. Thaw in the fridge overnight and remove from the fridge 30 minutes before baking. Bake for 15 minutes and stir. Add crumb mixture and bake for 20 to 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly.
Did you enjoy this Cheesy Broccoli Casserole? Leave a rating and a comment below!
Cheesy Broccoli Casserole
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 pounds broccoli florets cut into bite sized pieces, approx. 10 cups
- 3 tablespoons salted butter
- ½ medium onion finely diced
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ cups milk
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened, cut into cubes
- 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- ½ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
Topping
- 1 cup coarsely crushed buttery crackers such as Ritz
- ¼ cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- 2 tablespoons salted butter melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add the broccoli and boil for 2 to 3 minutes or just until tender crisp. Drain very well and transfer to a 3-quart baking dish.
- In a medium saucepan, cook the onion in butter over medium heat until tender, about 5 minutes. Add flour, dry mustard, and salt, and cook for 1 minute more.
- Add the milk, a little bit at a time, whisking after each addition until smooth. Continue whisking over medium heat until thick and bubbly. Stir in the cream cheese and cook until the sauce is smooth.
- Remove the sauce from the heat and add the cheddar and parmesan cheeses. Whisk until smooth. Pour the sauce over the broccoli and stir to combine.
- In a small bowl, combine the crushed crackers, ¼ cup cheddar cheese, and melted butter. Sprinkle over the broccoli.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until the sauce is bubbly and the crumbs are golden brown.
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Casserole, Side Dish
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This was good. Sauce needed more seasoning. And the broccoli absolutely does not need to be cooked ahead.
Hi,
This sounds great! What type of milk and what type of salt – kosher or regular do you use? Thank you and can’t wait to try!
I use either whole milk or 2% milk and table salt. Enjoy the recipe and let us know how it goes!
Just a wonderful side dish any time of the year!!! Your recipes are easy, delicious, family favorite
ordered your book and can’t wait to try each and every recipe!!! Thank you!!!!
Hi Mary, I hope you enjoy the book and the recipes. I am glad that you are liking the recipes on the site. Thank you, and have a great rest of your day!
Hi Holly,
I know that this recipe will be delicious. I bought your book and I am loving it. So many great recipes, and I love the tips that you have in it. All the recipes turn out great.
Suzie
Delicious and easy to fix dish! My husband loved it! I love making your recipes Holly!
Thank you so much! God Bless!
So glad your family loved it Kimberly!
This was perfect! Very cheesy and creamy! So much better making this casserole completely from scratch! Thank you!
This was incredibly tasty! Only thing I did was add some cubed ham but there are so many directions you can go with this! so good!
I could have tinkered with ingredients to make something like this, but I really, really wanted just the perfect cheesy broccoli casserole on the coldest night of the year. And here it is. Thank you!
Gorgeous!
Broccoli and cheese sauce looks lovely,I have made it with coulflour before,but I made 2 packets of cheese sauce with milk and poured it on top with grated cheese,
Yum, sounds delicious Eve.
Wow, what a great casserole! I happened to have all the ingredients and it came out so delicious.
I served it with 3 cheese and spinach ravioli. The only thing missing maybe would have been some
garlic bread but it was a huge success. Thank you for sharing that wonderful casserole.
That sounds like a wonderful dinner thanks for sharing Sally!
Oh my, this recipe was excellent!! It was so simple and quick, and it was just so good! No need to change a thing. Thank you
Glad you enjoyed it so much, Kasey!
I just want to say thanks for all the little tidbits of help you place in each recipe. This really helps expand recipes to new heights!! Thanks!
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks, Denice.
My FAVORITE, but I use broccoli, carrots, and cauliflower ALL FRESH OF COURSE sometimes I add halved brussel sprouts. In a hurry you can cheat with cubed Velveeta. If using I bake a bit first , stir then add cracker topping and then finish baking. Just sayin.
Sounds delicious Pam, thanks for sharing!
Hi where do you buy buttery crackers as indicated in your cheese broccoli recipe.
tks
Diane
We use Ritz crackers but any kind of crackers will work.
Only have used a couple of recipes, but love what I’ve made. Looking forward to more!Z
Thanks Audrey! Happy to hear you have been enjoying them!
Made this tonight with a few change- I didn’t have mustard powder so I used Dijon mustard instead and it added a great taste to the whole dish! I also used short grain rice- takes a bit longer to cook (45 mins on stove top) but worth the wait! Will be using this recipe again :-)
Great idea Robyn! That sounds like a delicious substitution.
Nice recipe, sounds better than one I tried which used canned soup! I like to use Evaporated Milk in my casseroles. They come out much creamier than with regular milk. Thanks for this recipe. A very Happy Thanksgiving to you & your family. :-)
Thanks Angelina. Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours as well!
Thank you