Broccoli Cheese Casserole Recipe
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This Broccoli Cheese Casserole is a cheesy, delicious side dish! Made from scratch with a homemade creamy sauce and buttery, crunchy top, this fresh, family favorite recipe is the BEST! Perfect for holidays and family suppers!
So simple to prepare, my Broccoli Cheese Casserole is made from scratch and is an updated version of that old favorite from my childhood that included cans of cream of chicken soup. While there’s nothing wrong with that, I wanted to remake the recipe to make it fresher and an even more delicious comfort food favorite!
Once I made my creamy, cheesy sauce for my Broccoli Cheese Casserole from scratch, I never looked back! The result is a fresh, easy side dish with a buttery, crunchy cracker crumb topping that is the BEST Broccoli Cheese Casserole I’ve ever tasted!
Once you try this made-from-scratch recipe for this iconic casserole, I think it will become your favorite version, too. Here’s how you’ll make it.
Ingredients
Be sure to see the recipe card below for the full listing of ingredients, instructions, notes, and estimated nutritional information.
- Broccoli – I prefer to use fresh broccoli florets that I cut from whole heads of broccoli. You can also use pre-cut broccoli florets if you prefer.
- Butter – You can use salted or unsalted butter.
- All-purpose Flour – Used to make the homemade sauce for the casserole. This sauce replaces the cream of chicken or mushroom soup used in many recipes.
- Milk – Used in the homemade sauce. I prefer whole milk or even heavy cream for a rich and creamy sauce.
- Kosher Salt – I use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt. If you substitute with Morton’s Kosher salt, fine sea salt, or table salt, you will only need half the amount of the salt called for in the recipe.
- Ground Black Pepper – You can also use white pepper if you prefer.
- Cayenne Pepper – You only use a little cayenne pepper in this casserole dish for added flavor. If you are sensitive to cayenne, you can omit it.
- Monterey Jack Cheese – Makes the homemade sauce creamy and delicious.
- Sour Cream – Adds even more creamy, silky richness to the sauce while adding a slightly tangy flavor.
- Cheddar Cheese – Tops the casserole as it bakes.
- Buttery Crackers – Adds a crispy, crunch, buttery topping on the casserole.
How to Make Broccoli Cheese Casserole
- Prep. Preheat the oven and prepare your baking dish. Cut the broccoli into florets.
- Cook the broccoli. Add the fresh broccoli florets to a large, heavy-bottomed pot of boiling water and cook. Drain the cooked broccoli and set aside.
- Make the sauce. Melt butter over medium heat in a skillet or saucepan. Whisk in flour until well combined. Then, whisk in milk, salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, and Monterrey Jack cheese. Reduce heat to simmer. Continue to whisk until the sauce simmers slightly around the edges and has thickened slightly. Stir in the sour cream.
- Bake the casserole. Arrange the broccoli in a casserole dish. Then, pour the cream sauce over the broccoli. Top with cheddar cheese and crushed buttery crackers. Bake uncovered until bubbling. Then serve warm and enjoy!
This is great for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter with Turkey Breast or Roasted Turkey. It is also delicious anytime with Roast Chicken or Baked Chicken Breasts.
Recipe Tip!
Make a One-Dish Meal! Add 1 to 2 cups of shredded chicken to the recipe for a delicious, easy meal!
Storage Tips
Make Ahead Unbaked Broccoli and Cheese Casserole. Make without the final topping of cheese and butter crackers. Store the unbaked casserole for up to one week in an airtight container in the refrigerator. When ready to bake, top with the cheese and crackers and bake as directed.
Freeze Unbaked Broccoli Cheese Casserole. Store the uncooked casserole in an airtight, freezer-safe container without the final cheese and butter cracker topping for up to 3 months in the freezer. When ready to bake, thaw in the refrigerator overnight, top with cheese and crackers, and bake as directed.
Store Leftover Casserole. Refrigerate leftover casserole in an airtight container or wrap well with wrap for up to 4 days. Reheat and serve.
Freeze Leftover Casserole. Transfer to a freezer-safe container(s) and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw, reheat, and serve.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! You can easily divide this recipe to make fewer servings. Another idea is to prepare the full recipe and divide it into two smaller dishes. Bake one for now, then hold off on adding the topping to the second dish and freeze it for later. See how to freeze this recipe under Storage Tips above.
You can. I prefer to use my homemade cheesy cream sauce or my homemade cream of chicken soup, but you can use your favorite canned soup if you need to do so. If you use canned soup, omit the ingredients for cheesy cream sauce.
Other Favorite Casseroles and Side Dishes
If you tried this Broccoli Cheese Casserole Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Broccoli Cheese Casserole
Ingredients
- 3 heads broccoli, cut into florets (about 8 cups)
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups whole milk or heavy cream
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 cup grated monterey jack cheese
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 cup grated Cheddar cheese
- 2 cups crushed buttery crackers
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º F. Spray a 13 x 9 – inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
- Add broccoli florets to a large heavy-bottomed stockpot of boiling water. Cook for 3-5 minutes and then drain broccoli from the water. Set aside.
- Melt butter over medium heat in a small saucepan. Whisk in flour until well-combined, then whisk in milk, salt, pepper, cayenne pepper and 1 cup of Monterrey Jack cheese. Reduce heat to simmer and continue to whisk until sauce simmers slightly around the edges and has thickened slightly. Stir in sour cream.
- Arrange broccoli in casserole dish and then pour cream sauce over broccoli. Top with cheddar cheese and crushed crackers.
- Bake uncovered for 35-40 minutes.
- Serve warm.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
This was different from my usual broccoli casserole but it’s a new favorite! The rich cheesy sauce with just the perfect kick of cayenne was a winner at our recent church luncheon. Several asked for the recipe. I made mine with 2% milk but otherwise made it exactly as written. This one’s a keeper!
Thanks so much Summer! xo
In a few days our church is feeding homeless teens and young adults. We are doing a potato bar type of thing and I thought broccoli with cheese sauce would be a good topping. Is this something that can be made a head of time and would maybe be good to scoop on top of a potato along with chili and our other choices? Or do you thing it’s too thick. I’m trying to do something where I can get it ready ahead of time and not wait have a last minute rush out the door type of thing occur.
Hi Jan,
I’ve not used this as a potato topping before so I can’t say how that tastes, but it is very delicious casserole.
You can make it ahead of time if you want to freeze, you’ll just want to omit the cheese and cracker topping if you plan to freeze until right before you plan to bake it.
I want to mention a couple of additional ideas that could help you with options:
Hot Pimento Cheese Dip, Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip are both delicious hot dips.
I hope this helps. Best of luck to your church for this dinner – what a blessing to so many! xo
This is 1 of my favs for Thanksgiving. Instead of regular bread crumbs I crush slices of leftover garlic bread and use that for the topping. Never fails to be the first empty bowl on the table,
So glad you like it, Jillian! Thanks so much!
Help!!
Love this recipe but need to know if it can be made Tuesday for Thanksgiving dinner. No room in the freezer!
Thanks for the quick response
Pam
Hi Pam!
Yes – I give detailed instructions on how to make your Thanksgiving meal ahead, including the Broccoli Cheese Casserole, in my Make Ahead Thanksgiving Recipes post. It helps me so much too!
If cauliflower is substituted for the broccoli should it be balanced first?
Awesome! Everyone in the family loved it 🙂
So glad you all enjoyed it, Nicole! Thanks so much!
Can I make it ahead of time?
Absolutely! It holds well in the refrigerator and then just reheat at 350º F until it reaches 165º F internally, about 30 minutes.
This recipe is perfect. Thanks for the upgrade! The Monterey and Cheddar cheeses are perfect together. My family loves this instead of steamed broccoli.
So happy you enjoy this Tomika! You’ve reminded me how much I love this so I’m going to have to make it this week! Thanks so much! xo
Just making this ahead for christmas dinner and just from tasting the sauce I know this will be great. I had to thin my sauce a little with milk because it got way too thick — maybe because I used rice flour (we have 2 people with Celiacs in the family). Anyway, thanks for the recipe. I was never crazy about using soup in recipes and searched for broccoli casserole without soup and I’m so glad I chose your recipe from the several that came up.
I hope you enjoy it! Thanks so much, Caryl! Merry Christmas! xo
I’m signed up to make my family’s traditional version of this casserole, which uses a certain block cheese product. I’ve threatened to do my own, being a fairly accomplished cook, and met with resistance. I might just spring this on them anyway lol, its sounds so good.
I hope you enjoy this, Jim! My family loves it! Thanks so much!
Hallelujah! Finally a casserole with no canned stuff, no mayo, no eggs, no rice. Just cheesy goodness and broccoli. Thank you!
Thanks so much, Marilyn! I hope you enjoy it! It’s one of our favorites! xo
HI Robyn,
This recipe sounds delicious. Have you made it ahead of time (like the day before)? What adjustments would I need to make, if any?