Broccoli? Yes. Broccoli.

Broccoli is one of those great vegetables that sadly, I don't really think about unless I have to.

I've mentioned before that I do the cooking and grocery shopping for my in-laws while my family is living with them. Every now and then, my mother-in-law will go to Costco to stock up on some things. When she does, she always comes back with a huge amount of produce (I mean, who could resist? The produce at Costco is always so great and well-priced). After a few of these trips, she has brought home some very large bags of fresh broccoli florets originally intended for snacking purposes. The problem with that is that my in-laws really don't eat raw broccoli (and they don't usually have the time to cook it for a snack either). The first few times they bought broccoli, I left it alone because I didn't know if they had any plans for it...but nobody touched it and it simply went bad after sitting in the vegetable crisper for a couple of months.

After that, I decided to give my in-laws a little time to eat the broccoli as a snack (as they intended when they purchased it), but after a little grace period, I started building meals and side dishes around the broccoli to use it up before it went bad. I've made some really good recipe discoveries as a result!

One of them, I've already posted on this blog. It is a super easy recipe that features couscous, broccoli, and chicken with lemon as the main flavor. You can check out that recipe here. (I need to make it again so that I can take a picture of it...and eat it again, of course!)

The majority of the recipes are Asian-influenced. Broccoli just soaks up Asian marinades so well!

First, I am sharing a very easy recipe for sesame noodles. Next up is an easy crustless quiche that features a surprise spice--nutmeg. The nutmeg adds such a subtle and savory punch to this dish. Then, I'm sharing two versions for beef and broccoli. Finally, I'm adding a simple Chinese broccoli side dish that is really flavorful.

I used fresh broccoli in all of these recipes, but frozen broccoli will work just as well. We should all think about broccoli more than we do!


Lighter Sesame Noodles

Serves 4

Whole-wheat spaghetti complements the zesty sauce while adding fiber. A little less peanut butter plus a lot more vegetables make this a no-guilt meal.

Ingredients:

Coarse salt
12 ounces whole-wheat spaghetti
1 bunch broccoli, cut into florets, stalks peeled and thinly sliced
2 red bell peppers (ribs and seeds removed), thinly sliced
1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 to 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Directions:

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook spaghetti 3 minutes less than al dente. Add broccoli, bell peppers, and onion. Cook until pasta is al dente and vegetables are tender, 3 minutes more. reserve 1/2 cup pasta water, drain pasta and vegetables.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together peanut butter, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, oil, garlic, and red pepper flakes. Add hot pasta and vegetables; toss to coat, thinning sauce with a little pasta water, if necessary. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

Source: Martha Stewart website.

Notes: I didn't make any changes to this. I thought it was a great and easy recipe.



Crustless Broccoli-Cheddar Quiches

Serves 4

Breakfast (or brunch or a light dinner) for one? In these individual quiches, broccoli gives the creamy cheddar and egg a nice crunch; eliminating the crust cuts down on baking time.

Ingredients:

Butter, for ramekins (see notes)
Coarse salt
1 package (10 ounces) frozen broccoli florets
6 large eggs
1/2 cup half-and-half
Ground pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese (3 ounces)
Crusty bread and mixed salad (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter four 8-ounce ramekins (or a 9 inch pie dish); set aside. Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil. Add broccoli; cook 1 minute. Drain well; transfer to a cutting board, and blot dry with paper towels. Chop coarsely.

In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, half-and-half, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and nutmeg. Stir in broccoli and cheese.

Place ramekins on a rimmed baking sheet. Ladle broccoli mixture into ramekins, dividing evenly. Bake until golden brown, 35-40 minutes. Serve with crusty bread and a mixed green salad, if desired.

Source: Martha Stewart Everyday Food recipe, found on the Martha Stewart website.

Notes: The cheddar cheese called for in the recipe tends to make the eggs take a little longer to set up. I would suggest testing the quiche with a toothpick or a knife (like you would a cake) to make sure that the eggs in the center have completely set up. I made some of this in 4 ounce ramekins (since I didn't have 8 ounce ramekins) and I made the rest in a 9 inch pie plate. The ramekins were perfectly set up...the 9 inch pie plate needed more time than 40 minutes to be completely done in the middle. Also, I used whole milk rather than half and half because that's what I had on hand. If you wanted to lighten up this recipe, you could use 3 large whole eggs and 3-5 egg whites, or the equivalent amount of egg substitute (1/4 cup of of egg substitute is the equivalent to one egg). Also, you could even get away with using skim milk. It would still taste great. Finally, I used cooking spray instead of butter for the ramekins and pie plates. It worked great and saved calories.

Beef and Broccoli Stir-Fry

Serves 4

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons apple juice
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
3 cloves garlic, minced
Ground pepper
1 1/4 pounds flank steak, cut diagonally across the grain into 1/2 inch by 3 inch strips
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon canola oil
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 head broccoli, stems trimmed, peeled, and cut into 1/4 inch rounds, florets separated into bite-size pieces
Coarse salt

Directions:

In a large, shallow bowl, mix soy sauce, apple juice, vinegar, sugar, garlic, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Add meat; toss to coat. Let marinate 15 minutes. Transfer meat to a plate; reserve marinade.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a 12 inch nonstick skillet over high heat. In two batches, cook meat until lightly browned, turning once, about 2 minutes per batch. Remove meat. Add 1/2 cup water to pan; stir up browned bits with a wooden spoon. Pour into marinade; whisk in cornstarch.

In same skillet, fry broccoli in remaining teaspoon oil over high heat until bright green and crisp, tossing often, 2 minutes. Add 1 cup water; cook until broccoli is tender, 6-8 minutes.

Stir marinade, add to pan, and bring to a boil. Cook, stirring, until thickened, 30 seconds. Return meat to pan; toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Source: Martha Stewart website.

Notes: I LOVED the flavor of this beef and broccoli stir fry. It tasted just like what you can get at a great Chinese restaurant. However, it didn't have nearly enough sauce for my tastes. I made this awhile ago, but if I remember correctly, I actually tripled the sauce/marinade for the original recipe. This can be served over Chinese noodles, or white or brown rice. Also, if the flank steak is still slightly frozen, it is much easier to slice thinly.


Slow Cooker Easy Beef and Broccoli

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 pound beef boneless top round steak, trimmed of fat and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 jar (4.5 ounces) sliced mushrooms, drained
1 medium onion, cut into wedges
1/2 cup condensed beef broth (from 10 1/2 ounce can)
3 tablespoons teriyaki baste and glaze (from 12 ounce bottle)
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil, if desired
2/3 cup uncooked regular long-grain rice
1 1/3 cups water
2 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 cups frozen broccoli florets
(1-2 teaspoons Ground Ginger, optional, see notes)

Directions:

Mix beef, mushrooms, onion, broth, teriyaki baste and glaze, sesame seeds, and sesame oil in a slow cooker.

Cover and cook on low heat setting for 8-10 hours.

About 35 minutes before serving, cook rice as directed on package. Meanwhile, mix 2 tablespoons water and cornstarch in small bowl. Stir cornstarch mixture and broccoli into beef mixture. Cover and cook on low heat setting 30 minutes or until broccoli is crisp-tender. Serve over rice.

Nutrition information: 335 calories, 5 g fat, 60 mg cholesterol, 880 mg sodium, 40 g carbohydrate, 5 g dietary fiber, 32 g protein.

Source: Betty Crocker website.

Notes: After tasting this prior to serving, I felt like something was missing flavor-wise. I added some more teriyaki baste and glaze which helped, but it still wasn't quite right. That's when I realized that I was missing the taste of ginger. So, I added some ground ginger, to taste. I would suggest at least 1-2 teaspoons of ground ginger--though I added more than that because I really like ginger (or you can add fresh, minced ginger, if you have it). Also, I thought it would be more authentic to have sliced beef rather than cubed--however this was a mistake. The beef gets so tender in the slow cooker that when it was sliced, it pretty much just broke apart when I stirred the mixture together. Cubed beef would have held it's shape a lot better. While I prefer this recipe in a stir-fry form, it is nice to have this really quick and easy version to throw together on nights when you just don't have the time to whip up a stir fry.

Stir-Fried Broccoli

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 medium heads of broccoli, cut into florets
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp cornstarch
1 tbsp superfine sugar
1 tsp grated fresh ginger root
1 garlic clove, crushed
Pinch of hot chile flakes
1 tsp toasted sesame seeds, to garnish

Directions:

In a large skillet or wok, heat the oil until almost smoking. Stir-fry the broccoli for 4-5 minutes.

In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, cornstarch, sugar, ginger root, garlic, and hot chile flakes. Add the mixture to the broccoli. Cook over gentle heat, stirring constantly, for 2-3 minutes until the sauce thickens slightly.

Transfer to a serving dish, garnish with the sesame seeds and serve immediately.

Source: Perfect Chinese cookbook, published 2007. ISBN 978 1-4054-7365-1

Notes: This was soooo good. I was really surprised at how tasty and authentic this tasted for how simple it was.

Above: Stir Fried Broccoli served with General Tsao's Chicken over rice.