Roast broccoli on parmesan for crunchy, golden, savory goodness

Whenever there are random bits of crisped cheese lingering on a baking dish or sheet pan, chances are you’ll find me hovering over it, picking it clean of the irresistibly crunchy pieces.

I can never seem to get enough of them, which is why I find this recipe — which provides an entire pan full — so enticing. In it, mounds of grated parmesan cheese are baked to form crunchy golden disks beneath tender, lightly smashed broccoli florets. The cheese acts as a savory platform for each piece of broccoli, staying a bit pliable where it touches the vegetable, and forming a deep brown, crunchy matrix around it.

Get the recipe: Crispy Parmesan Smashed Broccoli

The parmesan layer is essentially a type of Italian frico, typically served as an appetizer or snack, where mounds of grated cheese are baked or cooked in a skillet until they become crackerlike crisps. After drooling over several social media videos that employed frico as a base layer for different vegetables, such as potatoes, sliced squash or Brussels sprouts, I couldn’t resist giving it a whirl with broccoli. As you can see from this recipe, it is a simple way to elevate the vegetable to a wow-inspiring side dish.

The broccoli is blanched first, until it is just tender but still bright green, which takes just a couple of minutes. Then it’s patted dry — an important step so excess moisture doesn’t interfere with the cheese crisping up later. You can cook the broccoli ahead and store it in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, but in that case I suggest plunging it into an ice bath after draining it to stop the cooking. You could also substitute frozen, thawed broccoli florets, or use a different vegetable, such as cauliflower.

Advertisement

Then you place small mounds of grated parmesan cheese onto a parchment-lined sheet pan, put a piece of broccoli on top of each, and use the bottom of a glass to smash the broccoli a bit, flattening it somewhat into the cheese. After a brushing of olive oil and a sprinkling of garlic powder and pepper, it goes into the oven. (No salt is needed, because the cheese adds enough saltiness.)

After just about 8 minutes, the cheese becomes brown and crisp, like a halo around each broccoli floret. A 10-minute rest in the pan allows it to crisp further and makes each one easy to scoop up from the pan with a spatula. It’s a side dish that goes well with just about any roasted protein, and is a treasure for crispy-cheese lovers — providing plenty of crunchy, golden savory-ness for everyone at the table.

Get the recipe: Crispy Parmesan Smashed Broccoli

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7uK3SoaCnn6Sku7G70q1lnKedZLOwu8NoaWlqZGR9cnuRbWabqp%2BYsLC4yGapqJmjqbKlec%2Baqaado5a7cA%3D%3D