Broccoli & Ham Cheese Casserole
Almost went into a food coma just adding this. I am a fan of a good, or any, mac & cheese, and broccoli with cheese is a bonus, then add ham, wow! Homemade cheese sauce, always a bonus. On my to cook list. And this is versatile, read the variants. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 340 grams dry macaroni, (12 oz)
- 1/4 cup butter, 1/4 block, (1/2 stick)
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup cream, heavy, whipping, or light
- 1/2 teaspoon mustard powder
- 2 cups Sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 cup Gruyere cheese, shredded, or Jarlsberg, Gouda, or Cheddar
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
- 3 cups broccoli florets, plus stem, the stem is just as good
- 2 cups cooked ham, cubed
For the Topping
- 1 cup bread crumbs, OR make from a shortcut
- 1 tablespoon butter, melted
- 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 200 C (400 F). Get out a 9x13 baking dish and grease that with butter, set the dish aside.
- Cook pasta in a pot of boiling salted water, add the broccoli during the last 2 minutes of cooking the pasta to make them tender yet crisp. Drain the pasta and broccoli under cold water to stop the cooking.
- In a large sauce pan, melt the butter. When melted, whisk in the flour and allow to cook for 2 minutes, while whisking. Slowly whisk in the cream of your choice, plus the milk, onion and mustard powders. Continue to whisk until thickened. Remove from heat and stir in the cheeses until melted, there, you just made a cheese sauce.
- Add the drained pasta and broccoli to a large mixing bowl, mix in the ham, then mix in the cheese sauce. Pour the mixture in the prepared baking dish.
- Mix together the Topping ingredients and sprinkle over the baking dish.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until just heated through. Do not over cook this, that advice comes from the author of the recipe, so best to pay attention to that.
Notes
I will price this when I get ham again in the city. For now, I will say Fair cost per serving based on the cheeses used.
Shortcut: Breadcrumbs.
Variants: 1. Use cheeses of your choice.
Inspired by Spend With Pennies and the link to this recipe is here.
United States.
United States.
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