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This is a very nice, homey casserole. Comfort food at its best! My husband and I both enjoyed this meal very much. Lots of healthy broccoli in this casserole plus a good dose of onion and garlic. plus plenty of flat-leaf parsley as well. The Italian seasoning is the surprise flavoring and all mixed with a rich Alfredo sauce and topped with my favorite mix of cheeses - shredded Mozzarella and Swiss cheeses.
If you want to change things up a bit, you could use 1 lb ground beef and 1/2 lb sausage meat. That will amp up the flavor quite a lot.
Even if you are feeding some non low-carbers, they will also enjoy this tasty casserole.
This is a quick and easy meal for weeknights when you don't want to fuss too much. To make things even easier (but not necessarily tastier), you can use commercial Alfredo sauce. I like all things creamy and my Alfredo sauce will not disappoint in that category.
This casserole is quite flexible in that you can add in some other vegetables like mushrooms, chopped zucchini or eggplant. However, you may want to increase the Alfredo sauce a titch in that case.
You can make this casserole ahead of time, wrap with plastic wrap, refrigerate and bake just before serving time.
You will probably notice that I didn't add much salt to this casserole due to the amount of Parmesan cheese, but you can do a taste test, and add more salt, if needed, in your opinion.
I used a large skillet, but if you don't have one you could use a nonstick pot instead. You could serve this casserole with one of your favorite salads.
If you don't have garlic, you could use garlic powder instead. I used a large 9 x 14 inch casserole dish. This is a dish that will please the whole family, I think, unless you have children who don't care for broccoli. I can't tell you how many times when our boys were growing up that I had to have separate meals for some of the family. Today the boys are less picky. I simply wasn't a very strict mother. Ian was the disciplinarian, but our boys were very good boys. I had a friend who said our boys made her children look naughty. lol We went through more with the boys after they got married, I think. However, they are wonderful sons today.
Instead of homemade Alfredo Sauce, you can use jars of alfredo sauce, but you need to factor in the carbs. For the family who are not low-carbing, you can serve this casserole with some rice.
I do not think whipping cream is quite the same as heavy cream, but in
this recipe you can use either. This meal has a good dose of protein
and vegetables to satiate everyone. The calories are not too out of
line, despite some of the high-calorie ingredients.
INGREDIENTS:
5 cups broccoli florets (1.25 L)
11/2 lbs lean ground beef, OR (0.68 kg)
1 lb ground beef and 1/2 lb sausage meat
1 cup diced onion (250 mL)
1 tbsp minced garlic (15 mL)
1 tbsp Italian seasoning (15 mL)
1/2 tsp salt (2 mL)
1/4 tsp black pepper (1 mL)
1 cup grated Mozzarella cheese (250 mL)
1 cup grated Swiss cheese (250 mL)
Fresh chopped parsley for garnish, optional
Alfredo Sauce:
8 oz cream cheese (250 g)
1/2
cup whipping cream (125 mL)
1/3
cup Parmesan cheese (75 mL)
1/4
cup water (60 mL)
1/4
cup butter (60 mL)
1 tsp minced garlic (5 mL)
1/2
cup chopped fresh parsley (125 mL)
Preheat the oven to 370°F (190°C).
In pot in boiling water, blanch broccoli 3
minutes. Drain and drop into ice cold
water to stop the cooking process and keep the broccoli bright green in color.
In large frying pan, cook beef and onions and when
cooked, add garlic and Italian seasoning, salt and pepper and cook 2 minutes. Add Alfredo Sauce and mix well. Add broccoli and 1/2
cup (125 mL) Mozzarella cheese and 1/2 cup (125 mL)
Swiss cheese.
Turn
mixture out into a 9 x 13-inch (23 x 33 cm) baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining cheeses. Bake 25 to 30 minutes until bubbly. If necessary, broil the top for a couple of
minutes. Sprinkle with parsley.
Alfredo Sauce: In saucepan over medium heat combine cream
cheese (cut up), whipping cream, Parmesan cheese, water, butter and minced
garlic. Whisk every now and then until
smooth. Stir in chopped fresh parsley.
Yield: 9 servings
1
serving
451.5
calories
25.5
g protein
36.6
g fat
0.5 g fiber
4.5
g net carbs
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