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 and broccoli was not one of them.
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, whether that’s for Thanksgiving dinner or just a weeknight and a craving hits, and that’s where this easy broccoli cheese casserole comes into play.
Y’all are going to love the decadent cheese sauce that coast the tender broccoli in this low carb broccoli casserole recipe is!
🍗 Variations:
Make it a Meal – Add cooked, shredded chicken or sliced and seared smoked sausage right into this dish to make it a meal.
Add Veggies – Swap half of the broccoli for cauliflower and proceed as directed!
Get Cheesy – Swap the cheddar for a different cheese of your choice, such as gruyere, colby jack, or mozzarella!
Crunchy Topping – Traditional broccoli casserole often has Ritz crackers or other cracker crumbs over the top. Instead, try crumbling up some pork rinds and sprinkle them over the top to add a little crunch!
Broccoli Cheese Casserole
Ingredients
- 20 ounces fresh broccoli florets
- 8 ounces cream cheese room temperature
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 1 cup freshly shredded 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 8×8 baking dish and sprinkle the Parmesan over the top.
- Bake for 10 minutes.
Tips & Notes:
Nutrition Information:
👩🍳 Ingredient Notes:
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Fresh Broccoli – You’ll note that I’m a fan of the fresh broccoli over the frozen! It just tastes better, but I do understand the convenience of the frozen kind. If that’s what you’ve got, it should work. I’ve just never made it myself in this recipe.
Cheese – This broccoli and cheese casserole is loaded up with rich cream cheese, freshly grated sharp cheddar cheese, and some grated Parmesan cheese! That’s going to add tons of creamy, decadent cheesy flavor to this casserole.
Mayo – It’s going to add even more creamy flavor to this keto casserole.
Seasoning – You don’t need many seasonings for this casserole. The rich, cheesy flavors with the broccoli pretty much do most of the work but we do like to mix in some garlic powder, salt, and ground black pepper!
Broccoli and cheese is a classic recipe that just about everyone can enjoy, including the kids!
It’s an easy casserole recipe that you can put together in no time.
With all that rich, creamy cheese nobody will even notice that this is a keto version of broccoli casserole.
How To Make Broccoli Casserole:
Broccoli – We’re starting with fresh broccoli for this recipe, because I personally think it has the best taste and texture. I do usually buy pre-cut broccoli florets in the produce section, but a head of broccoli works just as well. Chop the broccoli into small florets.
Steam – 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.
Cheese – You’ll mix together cream cheese, grated cheddar, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
Mix – 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.
Bake – 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 our stuffed chicken breast along with our keto coleslaw.
If you love this keto broccoli casserole recipe, be sure to try my broccoli salad or cauliflower potato salad!
❔ FAQs:
You can keep this low carb casserole stored in the fridge for about 3 to 4 days in an airtight or well sealed container.
This casserole should freeze well for up to few months. Keep it in a freezer safe container or wrapped in some foil and plastic.
I’ve never tried it in this recipe and would definitely recommend using fresh broccoli, but I think it would work fine with frozen.
Keto Broccoli Casserole for a Crowd:
This recipe is perfect for a family dinner and the leftovers will reheat well the next day.
If you’re serving a crowd or want to make this for a larger gathering, we recommend doubling the recipe!
Double all of the ingredients and bake for the same length of time in a 9×13 baking dish.
🥘 More Keto Casserole Recipes:
- Philly Cheesesteak Casserole
- Meatball Casserole
- Cheeseburger Casserole
- Spinach Casserole
- Keto Taco Casserole
- Big Mac Casserole
- Spaghetti Squash Casserole
regan says
just about to try this recipe… if I can figure out how many cups of broccoli to use! lolllll who’s with me?
Karen Allen says
I used two heads of broccoli.
Tiffany says
Could this broccoli recipe be made in the crock-pot instead of the oven?!?
Karly Campbell says
I’m not sure how all the dairy would hold up in the crockpot, but maybe! If you give it a try, please let me know how it goes!
Julie says
I made this recipe and it was delicious. I normally don’t like broccoli but I love this recipe. I omitted the mayo and added sour cream instead since I don’t like mayo. I definitely plan I’m making this often. It’s definitely even a keeper. Thanks for the recipe!
Lucille Bowen says
Looks delicious. Just started low carb eating. Looking for yummy recipes. Made my first chaffle yesterday. Looking forward to trying your recipes!!!
Jane Armstrong says
This is a fabulous recipe!! I added some bleu cheese for tang and topped it with crunched up parmesan cheese whisps!! Delish!!
Rebecca says
Cooked this tonight! It was amazing!
Melanie says
I wanted to cook chicken at the same time at 400, so I didn’t steam the brocoli first, just mixed it all up and baked for maybe 5 minutes, then stirred it again to spread the cheese better. I added mushrooms and a couple handfuls spinach, trying to clean out the fridge. Delicious! Will make again!
Stephanie says
This is by far the best broccoli casserole I’ve ever had! Thank you for the idea of adding cooked chicken in the bake. It always turns out perfectly.
Karly Campbell says
So glad you enjoy! 🙂
BB says
I can’t stand mayonnaise so I will be skipping that but I’m cooking a cream cheese and cheddar cheese chicken for dinner and the frozen broccoli should roast nicely in the same baking dish. Butter in the bottom of that too. Butter makes everything better! I never thought of putting cream cheese on broccoli before but I imagine it should be delicious. Thanks for this recipe and I will be looking around for others.
LaQuana says
Tasted great. I used garlic salt instead of garlic powder and I still used the frozen chopped broccoli. I just add more of the broccoli. Loved it. After doing low carb I needed some comfort food.
Jenn says
Did you cook the broccoli first?
Laura says
Can you add chicken to this recipe
Karly Campbell says
Sure! Already cooked and shredded/chopped chicken would be a great addition.
Sandra Vaughan Baker says
Karly,
Your recipe sounds delicious, and several of us are trying the low carb lifestyle, so I have a question.
I’m not sure if you can get an answer back to me as soon as I need it the first time, but at least I’ll know eventually! LOL (I am fixing my son a birthday dinner tomorrow and want to fix it for him.)
I would like to incorporate cauliflower into the recipe along with the broccoli. If I do so, how will I need to adjust the other ingredients? I’m not sure about how much to increase the quantities… and I certainly do not want to flub it up!!
Thanks for your help and for your yummy recipe!!
Karly Campbell says
Hi Sandra! I’d just sub half the broccoli for cauliflower. If you need to make a larger batch, just double recipe using cauliflower instead of broccoli for the second half.
Mike says
Great Recipe!
Thanks for sharing it. I made some adjustments after reading the comments and because I was looking for a one dish casserole. Used approximately two-thirds of the broccoli and added cooked bacon, cooked chicken breast, and a cup of chopped red onion. Turned out really good.
Synethia says
Thanks for adding those things. I was scrolling through the comments to see if anyone had added meat or poultry, since I was looking to make this a full meal and not a side dish. So I will definitely be adding cooked chicken and bacon to this tasty looking keto dish.
Kathryn says
I made it and we all loved it but all agreed that I would cook the broccoli a little longer. I am so happy that I found
your blog. I am looking forward to making more of your recipes. Thanks
Kadee says
I have tried this recipe twice now!!! My boys are not big fans of broccoli, but they love it as a side with meatloaf. Thank you for sharing!!!
Jill Roberts @ Wellnessgeeky.com says
Oh my! This broccoli cheese casserole was delicious and so easy to make! Will have to try this for my family. Thanks, Karly so much!
Angela Findlay says
This was really good. We improvised with Asiago cheese instead of cheddar. Very rich and filling.
Stephany says
I made your recipe but may a few modifications that turned out really well! I used a crown of fresh broccoli and a head of cauliflower. I skipped the microwave, tossed the vegetables with the cheese sauce and roasted it all in the oven at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes. I also cut the garlic powder in half and upped the salt. Roasting the vegetables with the cheese sauce made it sooooo good! Making it again and adding mushrooms.
Sarah says
This is one of my all time favourite keto recipes!! My kids all love it and its perfect made for meal prep too! I swapped the garlic for a teaspoon of dijon mustard (just my personal taste) and we eat this at least twice a week. Thank you for such a fabulous recipe! Sarah xx
Antoinette C May says
I made the broccoli it was delish my son and husband loved it my daughter in law had seconds young and beautiful and can eat anything with out worrie darn I miss my 20s. Lo . .. it was Delicious and simple .
JBizzle says
This recipe sucks. It’s more like a cheesy dip with broccoli. The instructions are different than the blog page. How do you steam fresh broccoli in 2 minutes in the microwave? Do you have a nuclear powered microwave or something? 10 minutes at 350F in the oven for fresh broccoli? Ok please show that. I would love to see that. I made this recipe and it’s gross. This taste nothing like broccoli and cheese at all.
Karly Campbell says
Sorry you weren’t a fan. Not sure what you mean about the instructions being different than the blog page…The 2 minute microwave time is followed by 2 minutes of sitting in the hot steam the microwave created. The broccoli isn’t meant to be fully cooked at that point or it would overcook in the oven. And I did show it after baking…all those photos + the video shows it as best I could. Sorry it didn’t work out for you, but based on the 150+ reviews giving this a rating at 4.5 stars, I’m guessing it’s just a matter of personal preference or user error. Either way, sorry it wasn’t a hit for you.
Wendy Weaver says
Wow- made this for the first time tonight. Cooking times were off but it was still delicious. I will be making this again sometime soon.