BROCCOLI AND CHEESE IN CREAM SAUCE

Pooja from "Creative Pooja" blog has re-started her "Vegetable of the week" event, coming back to blogging after a long break. Since India's Republic Day is on the January 26th, she has chosen the theme of "Orange, White and Green", which are the colors of Indian flag, to cook and display. Green Broccoli and Orange Cheddar cheese in white cream sauce is my contribution to this event. Thanks Pooja!:)

Tri-color Cream cheese blocks are my last year's contribution to Republic day cook up.

Enjoy Indian Republic day on the 26th!
Republic day, a very proud day for all Indians, is grandly celebrated all over India every year on the 26th of January. Here is the history;
"26th January 1950, is one of the most important days in Indian history as it was on this day the constitution of India came into force and India became a truly sovereign state. The Indian people finally realized their dream and the dream of their leader Mahatma Gandhi and the numerous freedom fighters who fought for and sacrificed their lives for the Independence of their country. So the 26th of January was declared a national holiday and has been recognized and celebrated as the Republic Day of India, ever since", according to Taj online.
More info about Republic day of India is here at WIKI.

Broccoli and Cheddar cheese in cream sauce:
When I read the theme of three colors of this event, I immediately thought of this dish which has all three colors, my kids' favorite Broccoli dish I cook for them often, easy to make and a delicious side dish to serve with crispy vegetable patties or any meat dishes.I served this with Hamburger meal!

You need: 1 (10oz) bag of frozen Broccoli or about 3-4 cups,
1/2 Cup grated orange Cheddar cheese,
For Sauce:
2 tbsp butter,
2 tbsp Plain flour,
1 cup light or fat free heavy cream,
1/2 cup milk, 2% or fat free,
(or 1 1/2 cups of 2% milk will do too)
2 tbsp Parmesan cheese,
a pinch or more Nutmeg powder,
salt and pepper to taste.
To make it:
1. Thaw the Broccoli, cover the bowl and microwave fro 3-4 mins or just until they are tender but mushy.If using fresh Broccoli, wash, cut and add a cup of water in a bowl, cover and MW until soft to bite. Drain all the water and cool.
2. Heat a non-stick pan, add butter and melt. Sprinkle flour over it and stir for 1 minute until it is well mixed and cooks until raw taste of flour disappears. Don't let it brown.
3. Add the cream and milk, let it heat and bubble for 2 mins. Add salt, pepper and Nutmeg pd to taste. When it starts to thicken slightly, add Parmesan cheese and 1/2 of the Cheddar cheese ie 1/4 cup and all the Broccoli, mix well.
4. Take off the pan from heat. Sprinkle the rest of the Cheddar on top and cover with a lid. Sauce gets thicker as it cools.
5. Serve as soon as possible with a main dish while it's still warm. If the sauce thickens too much like a paste (It shouldn't be unless you cooked the sauce too long!), add more milk, reheat and mix.

Hamburger Helper Meal I served with Broccoli cheese:
This dish which includes Pasta and gravy mix comes in a pre-packaged box and cooked with any ground meat, it makes a delicious meal with Broccoli cheese as the side dish. When I am short of time to cook from scratch on some Sundays, I grab a pack of this Hamburger meal!:)



Enjoy!:))