Broccoli cheese casserole is one of those side dishes that gets gobbled up every time. It’s so creamy, cheesy, and full of flavor. Even your picky eaters will devour this broccoli.
Would you believe that my parents never made me eat broccoli as a kid?
I honestly don’t think I ever even tasted broccoli until I was a teenager.
Which, hey, I’m not complaining. Broccoli was scary and green looking and I was super picky. My parents picked their battles.
But now? I LOVE broccoli. It’s probably my favorite veggie and I often eat it steamed with just a sprinkling of salt. No butter, no cheese, just good ol’ broccoli.
Sometimes, though, you’ve got to get a little fancy with your vegetables and that’s where this easy broccoli casserole comes into play.Y’all are going to love how cheesy and melty and flavorful this low carb broccoli casserole recipe is!
How to make broccoli casserole:
We’re starting with fresh broccoli for this recipe, because I personally find the frozen kind a bit icky. The texture is just all wrong for me.
Fresh is best when it comes to vegetables, right? 🙂
You’ll start out by steaming the broccoli lightly, either in a stove top steamer or in the microwave. For this recipe, I nearly always opt for the microwave, just because it’s easy.
Pop your broccoli into a large bowl with two tablespoons of water, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and microwave for 2 minutes.
The cheesy goodness that makes this broccoli cheese casserole recipe so good starts with cream cheese – my favorite food on the planet. 😉
You’ll mix together cream cheese, grated cheddar, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
Scoop that mixture right on top of your hot and steamy broccoli and start stirring. The mixture should melt right into the broccoli pretty quickly as you stir.
Transfer this to a baking dish and sprinkle the top with Parmesan cheese.
Bake it up and you’ll have this decadent broccoli and cheese casserole that the whole family will love!
This easy broccoli casserole is ready to go in just about 20 minutes.
Serve alongside some grilled chicken or steak with a side of keto coleslaw!
If you love this keto broccoli casserole recipe, be sure to try my broccoli salad and cauliflower potato salad!
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Broccoli Cheese Casserole
This low carb broccoli cheese casserole is ready in just about 20 minutes and is always a hit with my kids. Cheesy broccoli makes the perfect side to any grilled meat.
Ingredients
- 20 ounces fresh broccoli florets
- 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 1 cup freshly grated cheddar cheese
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Add the broccoli to a large microwave safe bowl along with 2 tablespoons of water. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and microwave for 2 minutes. Let sit, covered, for 2 minutes.
- Add the cream cheese, mayonnaise, cheddar, garlic powder, salt, and pepper to a small bowl and mix well to combine.
- Stir the cream cheese mixture into the steamed broccoli until well combined.
- Transfer broccoli to an 8x8 baking dish and sprinkle the Parmesan over the top.
- Bake for 10 minutes.
Notes
This recipe is very cheesy! Feel free to add more broccoli or less cream cheese, if you don't want it quite so rich and decadent.
We purchase bags of FRESH broccoli florets in the produce section. It's more expensive than buying a head and chopping yourself, but it's my favorite time saver and helps us eat more broccoli when I know I don't have to spend time prepping it.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 323Total Fat: 28gSaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 12gCholesterol: 64mgSodium: 502mgCarbohydrates: 8gNet Carbohydrates: 5gFiber: 3gSugar: 3gProtein: 10g
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Can I use frozen broccoli in this recipe?
It should work fine, though we’ve only made this with fresh.
I use frozen all the time and just slightly defrost is before hand. This is the best broccoli recipe 😛
Yummy
Great recipe! Exactly what I was looking for! I did half the cream cheese based on some comments and to compensate I was a bit generous with the cheddar. So delicious. I will definitely make again regularly.
Thanks, Jennifer!
Oh Yeah…. I have made it twice…. first time exactly and the second time went with less cream cheese and several different types of cheese to add, like havarti and swiss along with the cheddar and parm…. next time I am going to add chicken….. thank you
Full disclosure…big broccoli fan. Made this a few months ago following the recipe with the addition of sautéed mushrooms and shallots. As written, found the cream cheese too much and the texture a bit gummy as others mentioned. So took another try, post-thanksgiving. This time I only had manchego (leftover from the thanksgiving cheeseboard) which I think helped since it’s a bit less oily than cheddar. Cut the cream cheese way down, added a bit of Dijon mustard for some sharpness and dash of nutmeg which is typical for a cheese sauce. Added the cheese mixture into the warm sauté pan with the cooked shallots, mushrooms and thyme. Which helped loosen it up. Then folded in the broccoli and a good helping of leftover shredded thanksgiving turkey. Dropped into the casserole pan and everything was perfectly coated. The turkey and broccoli where the main stars and the cheese was there, not overwhelming and held it all together on the plate. The original recipe is a great start to all kinds of interpretations.
Would this casserole freeze well? Perhaps even before cooking? Trying to make ahead for family dinner.
Hi Gloria! I’m honestly not sure how well this one would freeze. I think it’d probably be fine, if you like frozen broccoli. We’re not fans here – fresh is always our go to. But if you don’t mind it, it’d probably work okay.
Don’t use cream cheese if you are going to freeze, otherwise the cream cheese will separate. Maybe if you make a roux cream sauce it won’t separate, but it’s a gamble.
We will be traveling for Thanksgiving. Could I make this wonderful sounding dish in advance? And how would I do that?
Hi Patty! We personally don’t super love reheated broccoli – it tends to get a bit mushy. However, you definitely CAN make this ahead, if that doesn’t concern you. I wouldn’t make it more than a day in advance.
This was a perfect low carb side to go with the ribs my husband smoked today. I followed the recipe exactly and I don’t think anything needs to be changed on it.
Thanks, Sandie! 🙂
Is it ok I’m thinking of adding chicken or hamburger meat to it.
Yep, just make sure it’s cooked first.