Foodie Friday - Broccoli Casserole

Welcome to the first post of Foodie Friday* where I post about something I made, where the recipe came from, and if it was a winner or a dud. This may or may not be weekly. Depends on what I cook, when, and if I remember to photograph it.

The first recipe I'm highlighting is Broccoli Casserole from The Gluten Free Gourmet Cooks Fast and Healthy by the late trailblazer Bette Hagman (page. 284).

A Little Background
I have Celiac's Disease, which means that I can't have anything with Gluten in it, so when I was first diagnosed, the Gluten Free Gourmet series was the only thing available to newly diagnosed Celiac's back in the early 2000s (I was officially diagnosed in 2004). We actually now own all of the books in the series, thanks to wedding gifts (thank you if you are reading this!) and frankly, I still find them the most trustworthy cook books (to the point that when someone asked me what flour mix I used, I realized that all of mine are from this series of books. I have yet to buy a GF flour mix). Yes, the recipes can be a lot more complicated than you might like, but I think the results end up being fantastic (mostly).

Broccoli Casserole
I like easy recipes. I was also in the mood for something with broccoli at the beginning of November, so what I did was searched through the books for something. Somehow I stumbled upon the Broccoli Casserole and tried it.

We loved it. I've made it 4-5 times now. With prep time and cook time, the dish can be done in roughly an hour, which is great for me! It could possibly be less if there were a few things you didn't do yourself (like chop the broccoli), but I don't mind those things.

I'm actually posting more about my modifications. For example, if you try this recipe, 3 tablespoons of sugar is just way too much sugar. I also cut the salt to what looks more like 3/4 teaspoon and eyeball the bread crust and broccoli (usually 3 bread slices will work, processed in a small food processor to "crumble" them, and a large broccoli crown).

Before going into the oven.

The first time I made it, it was way too sweet. In the last few versions, I've cut back on the sugar which makes the dish more like a quiche. That makes it perfect for dinner. This also happens to be one of those dishes once it is made, it doesn't last more than 2 days in this home. Hagman mentions in the recipe description that this is great reheated and that is absolutely true, so this is a perfect make for the week dish as the flavor improves and lasts.

Overall, this is a winner and is going into our regular rotation of recipes. Just look at it!

Fresh from the oven! YUM. 9 servings? Um...more like 4.

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*(Any similarity to another blog series of the same name is unintentional. I did not research this name before starting the series).

PS: I'm looking into affiliate programs for books so you can visit a site to check out the book. Any favorites? Any not so favorites? Leave me a comment.