Cleaned Up Broccoli Cheese Rice Casserole is the perfect side dish for all your holiday meals!
This is one of my all time favorite holiday casseroles when I was growing up and I still love it! It’s cheesy, carby and even has some greens snuck in the mix. Basically, perfect for me! Honestly, I could add some shredded chicken to this and call it a meal. But for the purpose of keeping this a casserole side dish post, I’ll keep things simple.
Cleaned Up Holiday Recipes
Growing up my Granny always made Broccoli Cheese Rice Casserole to go with pretty much all of our holiday meals. It was always one of my favorites. Back when I first started this blog, I asked her for the recipe so I could share it. You can get the old school recipe here. It still remains one of my most popular posts around the holiday season, can you believe that?
Back then, I promised I would make a “cleaned up” version using ingredients that I like to cook with regularly and now I am finally getting around to fulfilling that promise! This version has all the cheesy goodness but just made with wholesome, organic if you want, ingredients.
The holidays aren’t the time of year where I am especially concerned with calories or nutrition. I definitely love to indulge a little but that doesn’t mean I want to compromise on the quality of ingredients. So this year, I cleaned up lots of old favorites like this Homemade Green Bean Casserole from Scratch and I even made a Cream of Chicken Soup Substitute, that you can use in place of the canned stuff in any recipe!
You Might Also Love Kale Orzo and Butternut Squash Casserole!
Cleaned Up Broccoli Cheese Rice Casserole
Makes one 9×13 casserole
Ingredients:
4 cups of broccoli, fresh or frozen, chopped
1 medium white onion, chopped
3 cups sharp cheddar cheese, divided
1 cup dry long grain rice
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup half and half
2 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons butter
3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 tablespoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
Directions:
- Cook rice according to directions on package and set aside.
- Sauté onion and garlic with butter and half the salt in a skillet over medium heat until translucent, about 3 minutes.
- Reduce heat and add half and half and flour to pan, stirring to prevent lumps. Add chicken broth, spices, and remaining salt, stir until well combined.
- In a large bowl, mix together broccoli, cooked rice and onion mixture. Add 1 cup of cheddar and stir together.
- Put into a baking dish and top with remaining cheddar. Cover and bake for 40min at 350 degrees. Remove cover and bake an additional 10min. Serve hot!
Cleaned Up Broccoli Cheese Rice Casserole
Ingredients
- 4 cups broccoli fresh or frozen, chopped
- 1 medium white onion chopped
- 3 cups sharp cheddar cheese divided
- 1 cup dry long grain rice
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 cup half and half
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3 cloves garlic minced or pressed
- 1 tablespoon salt divided
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
Instructions
- Cook rice according to directions on package and set aside.
- Sauté onion and garlic with butter and half the salt in a skillet over medium heat until translucent, about 3 minutes.
- Reduce heat and add half and half and flour to pan, stirring to prevent lumps. Add chicken broth, spices, and remaining salt, stir until well combined.
- In a large bowl, mix together broccoli, cooked rice and onion mixture. Add 1 cup of cheddar and stir together.
- Put into a baking dish and top with remaining cheddar. Cover and bake for 40min at 350 degrees. Remove cover and bake an additional 10min. Serve hot!
Notes
Do you make casseroles for family holidays and get togethers? Tell me in the comments!
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