This is a yummy and easy broccoli and cheese with bread crumbs side dish made with 6 ingredients in 25 min! I always look for the crispy cheese edges to pull off and eat when no one is watching. It’s a perfect side dish for family dinners and holidays as well. Low-carb & vegetarian.
This is my favorite way to eat broccoli. Broccoli and cheese (especially cheddar) were made for each other. Add some garlic and olive oil and top with seasoned Italian bread crumbs and it’s totally delicious! Plus, this dish is ready in 25 minutes! It’s simple and fast. You control the amount of bread crumbs if you want to make it very low-carb.
Broccoli and Cheese with Bread Crumbs
- First, cook the broccoli until tender and drain.
- Then, put the cooked broccoli into an oil sprayed baking dish.
- Then, drizzle some olive oil.
- Next, add the shredded cheddar cheese.
- Next, sprinkle salt & pepper.
- Then sprinkle garlic powder (Gotta have that)
- Next, top with Italian breadcrumbs (This is my favorite part!)
- Last, bake it for 15 min so the cheese can melt and the bread crumbs can mix in with the oil.
Note: You can mix the oil in with the bread crumbs first if you like. I just throw it all in there to make it easy on myself.
But, this broccoli casserole recipe is super easy! It has no canned cream of soup so, you don’t need to have that on hand. This is a FRESH Mediterranean style vegetable side dish.
However, you could add cooked chicken (a great source of protein) to this casserole and make it a meal!
Just look at this broccoli casserole up close!
Can I use frozen broccoli?
YES! Just cook it first either in the microwave, stove top, Instant Pot and drain the water before putting the broccoli in the casserole dish. If using an air fryer, coat the frozen or fresh broccoli with oil first and then bake it in the air fryer. so the edges don’t burn.
This vegetable side dish is easy-to-make and lightly tasty. My Italian family (straight from Italy) showed me this recipe when they visited years ago and I’m hooked on it! It’s FRESH and SIMPLE!
You can make this side dish as low-carb as you like by adding just a sprinkling of the bread crumbs, gluten-free bread crumbs or by omitting them all together.
Can I use Panko breadcrumbs?
YES! Panko bread crumbs would be great for this recipe. You can even do a 50/50 mixture of Italian seasoned bread crumbs and Panko. I do this often with salmon.
Can I make this KETO?
YES! I try not to use a lot of oil in this recipe but, if you’re doing a KETO diet, you can add more oil and omit the bread crumbs.
Is this recipe good to make for holidays!
That would be another YES! It’s good to make to feed a crowd just by tripling the recipe. Make this delicious vegetable side dish for Thanksgiving, Christmas or Easter. It takes little precious oven and stove time. Plus, it’s a great vegetarian option that you could even add some cooked pasta to to make it a hardy vegetarian meal.
Now, I gotcha thinking, huh?
Broccoli and Cheese with Bread Crumb Topping
Ingredients
- 8 cups cut broccoli florets
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/4 cup seasoned Italian bread crumbs
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1/8 tsp garlic powder
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- First, preheat oven to 375F.
- Then, cook broccoli in boiling water for about 5-7 minutes until tender. Drain cooked broccoli and place in an oil sprayed 11"x 3"x 8"casserole dish.
- Next, add garlic powder, salt and pepper. Drizzle oil on top.
- Then, sprinkle shredded cheddar cheese on top.
- Next, sprinkle bread crumbs on top.
- Bake for 15 minutes.
Did You Make This Recipe?
If you made this recipe don’t forget to leave a review!
I’m glad you liked it and thanks for the 5-star rating!
Simple and wonderful
Hi Antoinette. You should cook the broccoli ahead because putting it in the oven will not be enough time for the broccoli to get tender.
Can I cook broccoli ahead of time?
I’ve never frozen it so I can’t say. Sorry I can’t help.
Does it freeze well ?
Thanks Sandra. That sounds great to use homemade bread crumbs. Thanks for the 5-star rating.
This is my go-to broccoli recipe now. It is easy & tasty & can be made ahead of time for company. I always have everything in the house to make it once I buy the broccoli. I make my own bread crumbs, so I just shake some Italian herb blend into the crumbs.
Yes. It just needs to be in a small baking dish to fit in your air fryer. The time will be shorter.
Can I cook this in air gryer