“Cheesy” Broccolis
Cheesy broccoli has been one of my favorite comfort foods since as long as I can remember. I was craving it this cold weekend and made a plant based, no dairy, fancier version. It is so delicious. I consider it fancier because it contains broccoli’s lesser known sister, romanesco. When I find broccoli and/or romanesco plastic free, I cannot help myself! If you have never tried (or seen) romanesco, this is a wonderful recipe to introduce you it. The star ingredients in the cheesy sauce are nutritional yeast, tahini, and butternut squash, which come together to make a creamy, dreamy sauce. These ingredients amp up the protein, vitamin A, B vitamin, and potassium content of this dish. There are two options for preparation. If you like your food to look nice, follow the directions for option 1.
Ingredients:
- 1 butternut squash
- 2 heads of broccoli
- 1 head of romanesco
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Salt & pepper
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
- 3 tbsp tahini
- 1 tbsp tamari
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- juice of 1 lemon
- Water
Directions:
- Peel (carefully) and chop the butternut squash into small chunks. Steam them until they are soft.
- Wash and chop the broccoli and romanesco into small florets. Place them on a baking tray with 1/2 tbsp olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast at 375F for about 40 minutes, mixing half way through.
- Once the butternut squash is soft, make the cheesy sauce. Combine the butternut squash, nutritional yeast, tahini, tamari, apple cider vinegar, and lemon juice into a blender. Blend until smooth and creamy. Add water if needed to blend!
- Option 1 (prettier version): combine the roasted broccoli/romanesco with the cheese sauce in a casserole dish. Bake at 375F for ~20 minutes until it starts to brown on top. Take a deep breath and enjoy.
- Option 2 (less pretty version): pour the cheesy sauce over the roasted broccoli/romanesco. Take a deep breath and enjoy!