Favorite Broccoli Casserole

My family always requests that I make this Broccoli casserole for Thanksgiving or Christmas. A friend, Mary Osborne, gave me the recipe in the 80's and I've been fixing it for years. I always double this for a larger group and there is NEVER any left!

Broccoli Casserole 

Preheat oven to 350º 

Serves 6-8

2 -10 oz boxes frozen broccoli or 1 bunch fresh broccoli, steamed 

2 sticks butter (1 cup)

1 lb ORIGINAL Velveeta cheese, in small cubed (16 oz, which is ½ large box)

2 rolls Ritz or Town House crackers, crushed. You'll be putting half the cracker crumbs on the bottom of the casserole, as well as on top. I like Town House best!

 Thaw broccoli at room temperature or in the microwave (but do not cook!) and squeeze out the water. Melt 1 stick butter in soup pot on LOW heat. Add cubed cheese. After adding cheese keep it on very low heat and keep stirring, because if you don't, the cheese will burn on the bottom & the whole dish will be ruined. (even on on low heat).  

After cheese is melted add thawed broccoli (with water squeezed out). OR add fresh steamed broccoli if you're using that.  Stir to coat the broccoli with the cheese mixture. Remove from heat. Melt the other stick of butter and add to the crushed crackers. Stir to coat crackers. Spread half the crumbs on the bottom of a 13"x9" oven safe dish that is been sprayed with oil. Pour the broccoli/cheese mixture on top of the cracker crumbs and spread it all over. Then spread other half of cracker crumbs on top of the broccoli. 

Bake for 15 minutes at 350º. This is easy to cook too long, especially if you're using a glass pan. But you want to make sure it's heated all the way through. There have been times I didn't let the frozen broccoli thaw enough and it was still cold when I mixed it with the cheese. 

You can thaw the broccoli in the microwave for a couple of minutes, but you just dont want to cook it, because to me, there's nothing worse than overcooked broccoli! On the other hand, if you're using fresh broccoli, you don't want to mix it in the cheese raw, or it won't be done after baking in the oven. That's why I steam it first. When in the oven you're basically just heating it and toasting the crackers.

I hope you enjoy this! Let me know if you have any questions.