Sausage & Broccoli Casserole

Serves 6
Prep Time: 40 m, Additional Cook Time: 30 m, Total: 1 hour, 20 minutes

12 oz Italian bread, sliced about 1/2" thick (I used Rosemary Olive Oil bread from Costco*)
2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
1 large red onion, cut into very thin slices
4 cups broccoli florets
1 tsp olive oil
12 oz raw turkey sausage, sweet Italian-variety
1&1/2 cups low-fat, low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 tsp table salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
cooking spray
1 cup low-fat shredded cheddar cheese

*Note: I really think the bread makes a difference in this recipe. The Rosemary Olive Oil bread I used has so much flavor, but I think any artesian bread would work great. Regular old Italian bread wouldn't add much flavor.

1. Preheat oven to 400ºF.

2. Rub bread with garlic clove. Place bread on one side of a baking sheet; spread onions on other side. Place broccoli on another baking sheet. Coat vegetables and bread with cooking spray. Bake until broccoli is tender, flipping bread over and stirring vegetables halfway through, about 15 minutes total. Remove pans from oven and cut bread into 1/2-inch cubes; reduce oven temperature to 350ºF.

3. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Remove sausage from casing; cook sausage, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as it cooks, about 7 to 10 minutes. Stir in broccoli and onion, bread cubes, broth, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes.

4. Coat a 9x13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Spoon half of broccoli mixture into prepared dish; sprinkle with 1/2 cup cheese. Top with remaining broccoli mixture; sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake until cheese is melted and casserole is heated through, about 30 minutes.

Results: The original recipe served 8, but that was definitely not a big enough serving, so I'm going to say it serves 6. It you serve this with a salad, or if you are a tiny bird, you may be able to make it serve 8.

Steven thinks this is going to be another yucky dinner.

This was sooooo good! The bread was nice and crunchy on top, but gooey and cheesy on the bottom, and the vegetables were cooked perfectly. I may, or may not, have licked the serving spoon as if it were covered with cake batter. Steven wouldn't touch it, Henry ate most of it.

Also, I'm starting a new feature to show how long a recipe took to make. I'll list the time it took from beginning to pull ingredients off the shelf to the meal being complete, so you can decide how much time you have to dedicate to dinner. This one took 40 minutes of active prep time, plus an additional 30 minutes cooking in the oven, so a total of 1 hour 20 minutes. I'll add a "tag" to the labels below. I would say this meal is worth the effort, but certainly not for a busy week-night!