Broccoli, Roasted

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Once in a while, every cook stumbles on a technique that transforms a vegetable from a tolerated item into a highly anticipated side dish. This technique which can easily be modified does it for broccoli and me. Admittedly I never hated broccoli, I didn’t love it, except in salads like broccoli almond salad, where the florets are little crispy sponges soaking up the dressing.

Make Perfect Roasted Broccoli

But here, there is the perfect balance of crisp and tender, with a hint of heat and, of course, garlic. Vampires don’t stand a chance if you cook the Home Ec 101 way.

Use your imagination when using this technique. Omit the parmesan cheese and substitute bacon crumbles or toasted sunflower seeds, top with cheese sauce, or go vegan, omit the cheese, and sprinkle with a tangy vinegar or lemon.

Print the grocery list.

Enjoy!

Roasted broccoli

Roasted Broccoli

roasted broccoli

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 bunch of broccoli cut into bite-sized florets, stems peeled and cut into 1/8" discs
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 2 cloves garlic, smashed and roughly chopped
  • pinch of crushed red pepper *optional*
  • 1/8 cup parmesan cheese
  • salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 425F.
  • Over medium heat in a small, heavy skillet, heat the smashed garlic close, olive oil, and option crushed red pepper for 5 minutes.
  • Smashing the garlic cloves increases the number of broken cells in the garlic clove. This allows more of the oils that carry the garlic flavor to infuse into the olive oil. It is perfectly all right to double or triple the amount of olive oil needed (plus the extra seasoning, of course) and store the extra in the refrigerator. The oil will become solid in the fridge, but it will return to liquid when brought back to room temperature for the next batch.
  • Immediately remove from the heat if the garlic begins to brown; it should be golden. Burnt garlic tastes bitter and will do nothing for your impression of broccoli.
  • Place the broccoli in a large bowl, pour the hot olive oil over the broccoli, and toss to coat evenly.
  • Spread on a baking sheet, lightly sprinkle with salt and bake for 8 - 10 minutes, just until the florets begin to brown.
  • Toss with parmesan cheese and fresh ground pepper.
Submitted to What I Learned This Week.
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20 thoughts on “Broccoli, Roasted”

  1. I go even simpler and just toss w/olive oil and sprinkle with lemon pepper. Plus I let mine roast a bit longer-till the ends are a bit brown. Yum! My kids actually ask for this 🙂 Then again, the fact that I frequently serve it as a side to go with my homemade pizza might have given them good associations for it 🙂
    My recent post From the Frugal Upstate Vault

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    • Ditto on the longer roasting for bits of brown-ness. Not too much! I just toss with olive oil and/or butter before roasting, then sprinkle with Celtic sea salt afterwards, and MAYBE some freshly crushed garlic. (I HATE the taste of roasted garlic, so I prefer to add it afterwards)
      My recent post Figment

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  2. Oooooooooooh! I started doing this with cauliflower last fall – OMGYUM – but broccoli (which I like just fine steamed) has been off my radar for a while. I just bought some at the Farmer's Market on Saturday – I will definitely try this with it today!
    My recent post Hot Chocolate – Dairy Free

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  3. Oooooooooooh! I started doing this with cauliflower last fall – OMGYUM – but broccoli (which I like just fine steamed) has been off my radar for a while. I just bought some at the Farmer's Market on Saturday – I will definitely try this with it today!
    My recent post Hot Chocolate – Dairy Free

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  4. Heather, this roasted broccoli sounds great. I'll try it this week …. I've been starting to roast all kinds of vegetables and hubs and I have really been enjoying them.
    BTW, in honor of Fearless Fridays, I made southern-style buttermilk biscuits for hubs. I'm a New Englander by birth and hubs is from West Virgina; his mother made wonderful biscuits and for years I was too intimidated to try (and compete?). But on Saturday I took courage in hand and made a batch. They were good! And my husband loved them!
    One fear conquered! Thanks for your inspiration.

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  5. Yum, yum, yum! I was trying to figure out a different side dish to go with roast chicken for tonight….I roast mine with garlic, so this sounds perfect. Heather, you are a genius, as always!

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  6. Yes! Yes! Yes! I love all kinds of roasted veggies but especially broccoli. I just toss mine with olive oil before roasting and some sea salt before roasting. Then a big squeeze of fresh lemon when it's done. DELISH!

    I love roasting cauliflower too. It totally changes the taste to YUM. Especially when you pour a little browned butter on top when it's done. Mmmm. Mmmm. Mmmmm.
    My recent post DIY Day with *Shey*[B]

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  7. i make roasted broccoli all the time, i saw it as a barefoot contessa recipe once. it's delicious, and i also roast it a bit longer so it gets nice and brown and crispy, maybe 30 minutes or so usually does it for me. i also usually leave out the garlic, more out of laziness than anything else though. i find it tastes good enough with a little olive oil, salt, and pepper, then sprinkled with lemon juice and parm cheese when it's done roasting. easily my favorite vegetable side. now if only it didn't make my whole house smell like broccoli for the whole rest of the night…:)

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  8. I tried it on Saturday and LOVED IT! Went to Costco, got more broccoli and roasted ALL of it (3# of florets) last night. I will be eating it all week. Can't wait to try it with other veggies — brussel sprouts, asparagus, green beans …

    Reply

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