Broccoli Gratin (French Version)

This Broccoli Gratin is an easy, healthy comforting French-inspired dinner recipe that combines steamed broccoli baked in a creamy bechamel sauce. Plus, this French-inspired Gratin is also vegetarian and a perfect meat-free dinner ready in 30 minutes.

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This broccoli gratin recipe is the most classic French family recipe that is one of the most common French dinners, in the same vein as my Ratatouille, French Green Beans, or French Buckwheat Crepes.

Gratin is the French word for casseroles baked in the oven and topped with a crust made either of cheese or breadcrumbs. Gratins are dishes containing meat or vegetable and a generous amount of sauce in which it cooks.

Ingredients and Substitutions

All you need to make this cheesy broccoli casserole are:

• Broccoli Florets – Get a broccoli head and cut the feet to only keep the small florets.
• Butter – You can use ghee or coconut oil or olive oil but these two options add a lot of flavors to the sauce. So if you don’t want an overwhelming olive or coconut flavor, stick to butter or dairy-free butter for a vegan version.
• Flour – You can use regular all-purpose flour or a 1-1 gluten-free blend.
• Lukewarm Milk of choice – as long as you are not using ‘sweet’ milk like rice milk, any non-dairy milk will work well including unsweetened almond milk or soy milk.
• Salt and Pepper – Season to taste.
• Ground Nutmeg – For the Bechamel sauce.
• Garlic Powder – Or fresh crushed garlic.
• Shredded Swiss Cheese or any shredded hard cheese you love including cheddar cheese, Emmental cheese, or Parmesan cheese.
• Breadcrumbs – You can use regular breadcrumbs, gluten-free alternatives, or a keto version.

How To Make Broccoli Gratin

Broccoli gratin or broccoli au gratin as some people call this dish is an easy 30-minute Vegetarian family dinner or side dish. It consists of steamed broccoli florets, covered with a bechamel sauce and topped with melted cheese and crispy breadcrumb.

1. First, trim the broccoli stem into small florets.
2. Discard the large, hard stem and keep the broccoli florets only.
3. Bring water to a boil, and boil the florets for 2 to 4 minutes or until vibrant green and just fork tender but still crunchy.
4. You don’t want to overcook the broccoli because extra tender broccoli will get mushy later in the sauce.
5. You can also steam the florets for the same time, in a vegetable steamer.
6. Drain over a sieve and steam out for a few minutes while making the sauce.
7. To make the cheesy bechamel sauce, warm the milk in the microwave for 1 minute or in a non-stick saucepan. Don’t boil it, just bring the milk to a lukewarm temperature. Set it aside.
8. In another non-stick saucepan over medium heat and melt butter.
9. Remove from the heat and stir in flour until it forms a sort of paste.
10. Return to medium heat, stir and cook the ‘roux’ for a few seconds. Add in the milk gently and whisk slowly at the same time to dissolve the flour-butter mixture into the milk.
11. Bring to a light boil, uncovered, then reduce to low heat and stir occasionally until the sauce thickens. It takes about 3 to 5 minutes.
12. In the end, stir in half shredded cheese, garlic powder, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Stir constantly until cheese is melted, then remove from heat.
13. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Slightly oil a 9-inch x 9-inch square pan with olive oil. Set it aside.
14. Lay the steamed broccoli florets into the baking dish. It’s totally fine if broccoli florets overlap slightly.
15. Cover with the cheese sauce and top with remaining cheese, and breadcrumbs.
16. Bake the broccoli and cheese casserole for about 20 minutes at 350°F (180°C) uncovered on the center rack of the oven.
17. Keep baking until the sauce is bubbly, the cheese has grilled, and the broccolis are tender.

Serving

This is a great broccoli side dish or main dinner for vegetarians. You can serve this recipe as a side dish to any of my Keto Chicken Recipes.

• Cast Iron Chicken Breast
• Lemon Pepper Chicken Tenders
• Almond Flour Chicken Tenders
• Keto Chicken Nuggets
• Baked Pork Chops

Allergy Swaps

Below are some allergy swaps to adapt this recipe based on your food allergies:

• Low-Carb – Replace the sauce with my keto alfredo sauce recipe and stir in spices and cheese from this recipe. You can use keto breadcrumbs made from pork rinds or low-carb bread or use ground almonds.
• Dairy-Free Vegan Option – Use soy or almond milk in combination with dairy-free butter. Then use dairy-free cheese or nutritional yeast to flavor the sauce.
• Gluten-Free – Use your favorite all-purpose gluten-free flour in the sauce.

Frequently Asked Questions

Below are the answers to your most frequent questions about this broccoli recipe.

More Casserole Recipes

If you like casseroles, you’ll love these other casserole recipes:

Cheeseburger Casserole

Cheeseburger Casserole

Spaghetti Squash Carbonara

Eggplant Rollatini

Green Bean Casserole

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Broccoli Gratin

This Broccoli Gratin recipe is an easy, healthy comforting French-inspired dinner that combines steamed broccoli baked in a creamy bechamel sauce.

Author: Carine Claudepierre

Prep: 10 minutes mins

Cook: 20 minutes mins

Total: 30 minutes mins

Yield: 8 serving (1 cup)

Serving Size: 1 serving

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4.65 from 14 votes

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Ingredients

US Customary – Metric

• ▢ 1.2 pounds Broccoli cut into florets from 2 fresh large broccoli steam (see note 1 for frozen broccoli)
• ▢ 6 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
• ▢ 6 tablespoons All-Purpose Flour note 2
• ▢ 2 ½ cups Lukewarm Milk note 3
• ▢ ⅛ teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
• ▢ ½ teaspoon Salt
• ▢ ½ teaspoon Garlic powder
• ▢ ⅛ teaspoon Ground Pepper
• ▢ 1 cup Shredded Swiss Cheese note 4
• ▢ ½ cup Breadcrumbs

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Grease a large baking dish with olive oil – mine is 9-inch x 9-inch big. Test if all your broccoli florets fit the pan.
• If using fresh broccoli florets, steam in a vegetable steamer until vibrant green and slightly tender – about 3-4 minutes or boil in boiling water for 3-4 minutes. Drain and steam out for 10 minutes in the sieve. Don't overcook the broccoli or they get mushy after when baked in the sauce.
• Warm the milk in the microwave for 1 minute or in a non-stick saucepan. Don't boil, just bring the milk to a lukewarm temperature. Set aside.
• In another non-stick saucepan, over medium heat, melt butter. Remove pan from heat and using a wooden spoon stir in flour to form a creamy paste of butter/flour – this is called roux.
• Return saucepan to medium/low heat, stir to cook the roux for 20 seconds then gradually whisk in lukewarm milk to slowly dissolve roux into milk without forming lumps.
• Add the remaining milk and bring it to a boil.
• Reduce heat, stir occasionally, until it thickens – about 2-3 minutes. If too thick to your liking, add slightly more milk to thin it out.
• Stir in garlic powder, salt, pepper, nutmeg, and half cheese. Cook until cheese is melted then remove from heat – it takes 1 minute.
• Arrange the broccoli in a baking dish – mine overlap in two layers.
• Pour the creamy sauce over the broccoli to fully cover them.
• Sprinkle the remaining cheese and breadcrumb on top of the dish.
• Bake uncovered on the center rack for 15 to 20 minutes or until sauce is bubbly and cheese melted and grilled.
• Serve immediately as a main dinner or side dish.

Storage

• Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge, for up to 3 days. Freeze in a sealed container for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge and rewarm over medium heat in a non-stick saucepan or in a microwave-safe dish.

Notes

Note 1: Cook frozen broccoli following packaging directions until tender but still crunchy.

Note 2: Use all-purpose gluten-free flour if needed.

Note 3: Any milk work, including almond milk, soy milk, or regular whole milk.

Note 4: Any hard shredded cheese works like dairy-free grated cheese or shredded cheddar.

Tried this recipe?Mention @sweetashoneyrecipes

NutritionServing Size: 1 serving

Yield: 8 serving (1 cup)

Nutrition

Serving: 1 servingCalories: 245.2 kcal (12%)Carbohydrates: 17.6 g (6%)Fiber: 2.3 g (10%)Net Carbs: 15.3 gProtein: 9.7 g (19%)Fat: 15.8 g (24%)Saturated Fat: 9.4 g (59%)Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.8 gMonounsaturated Fat: 3.8 gTrans Fat: 0.3 gCholesterol: 44.3 mg (15%)Sodium: 338.9 mg (15%)Potassium: 363.5 mg (10%)Sugar: 5.3 g (6%)Vitamin A: 922.1 IU (18%)Vitamin B12: 0.9 µg (15%)Vitamin C: 60.7 mg (74%)Vitamin D: 0.8 µg (5%)Calcium: 262.1 mg (26%)Iron: 1.1 mg (6%)Magnesium: 32.5 mg (8%)Zinc: 1.3 mg (9%)