Wednesday

Cheesy "Pizza" Broccoli



I didn't want to serve the same ol' steamed, or stir-fried broccoli,
then I remembered a recipe similar to this one, by Daphe Oz
(Dr. Oz's daughter), from her lifestyle/cooking book
"Relish"

Click image to learn more about the book.
It's a perfect choice for college students, young singles and
newlyweds. I'm none of those and I like it too. :)


Daphne's version is even more simple than the one I devised
(no roasted tomatoes/garlic/red onions or mozzarella in her version) 
but this one is a lot more flavorful, in my opinion.


By now, if you've been reading my blog for any
length of time, you know that I love cooking intuitively ~
that is with a basic recipe in my head, and then letting
the creative juices flow!  This is another one of those,
and you can adjust it to suit your own taste.




Easy and flavorful, here's what you'll need for
the basic recipe:

Cherry or Roma Tomatoes
Salt, Freshly ground black pepper
Olive oil (or oil of your choice)

Dried oregano leaves
1 or 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
Red pepper flakes
Half an onion, slivered
Fresh Broccoli Spears
Grated Mozzarella Cheese
Freshly grated Parmesan Cheese

Optional:
Lemon wedges
Fresh oregano or basil leaves
(Extras ~ see below)

Method:

Place rack in center of oven, preheat to 400ºF.

Wash and cut in half a couple of handfuls of
cherry tomatoes, or as many as you want to make a single layer~
 (you can use quartered Roma tomatoes or a similar variety; 
tomatoes that are not too juicy work best in this recipe.)
In a shallow baking dish toss them with some olive oil, sea salt and 
a little freshly ground black pepper.

Place pan in oven and roast tomatoes for 10 to 12 minutes
(make take longer, depending upon your oven and the baking dish
you are using.) Scatter 1 or 2 sliced garlic cloves, half of a slivered
onion (white, yellow, red/purple), a couple of generous pinches
of dried oregano, and a couple of pinches of 
red pepper flakes (optional), give a stir to coat with oil and
continue roasting for 10 to 12 minutes ~ it's okay if some tomatoes
begin to char.

While tomatoes are roasting, steam broccoli spears until just
crisp tender. Remove tomato pan from oven, arrange broccoli
over tomatoes, add a little s & p if desired, 
sprinkle with grated mozzarella cheese (as much or as little as you like), 
sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese and place back in oven, or under hot
broiler until cheese is melted and begins to bubble. 
Remove from oven allow to cool for a moment, sprinkle with a few 
fresh oregano or basil leaves.
Serve with lemon wedges if desired.




Add any of these optional ingredients if you like:
(to be added during second half of roasting tomatoes, or
upon serving, as garnish):

sliced or halved flavorful black olives
roasted red pepper slivers or pieces
marinated mushrooms
sliced green onions (scallions)
cured anchovy fillets
marinated artichoke hearts
cooked Italian sausage crumbles,
torn prosciutto, etc. 
 ~ almost anything goes!





Colorful and tasty, it makes a fine main course
or a great side dish for simply prepared meat, poultry or fish.

Gluten-Free and Vegetarian friendly, too.


Bon Appétit! And thank you for visiting today!


xo~mari









15 comments:

  1. Sounds delicious and I think my family would like it too.
    Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for stopping by Marilyn! If you try it I hope your family will like it too. :)

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  2. Bonjour,

    Il est encore tôt chez moi pour déguster ce plat... quoique ! rien ne m'arrêterait à la vue de vos merveilleuses photos !
    Gros bisous

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Bonjour Christine! C'est si bon de lire vos commentaires. Merci pour vos compliments, ils me font très plaisir! xo ~m. :)

      Delete
  3. Looks yummy~ I need to try this soon!!
    Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Marissa, I hope you like it. Even though I like broccoli very much, when I first read this recipe I thought it sounded a little odd so I set it aside. Then I had extra broccoli on hand, I was quite surprised when I made it ~ it received thumbs up here.

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  4. I like the twist on this dish! :)
    www.prettybitchescancooktoo.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tamara, thank you for stopping by and taking the time to leave a comment! Very kind of you. :) :) :)

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  5. i must be ill because suddenly veggies look appealing! or it means i have been eating too much sugar and finally crave REAL FOOD! scott would love this, just the other night he stopped at the store to buy salad... omg, it sounds like he is having an affair if he suddenly want to eat right! looks wonderful~

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jain, you're so funny! I think we're opposites when it comes to food ~ I crave savory/salty but sweets only once in a while. I envy you to be able to eat goodies whenever you want. But no matter what you make sweets or savory, it always looks beautiful!

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  6. I love the dainty little oegano leaves scattered here and there..
    I never even knew Dr Oz had a author/daughter:)
    I like him..
    Thanks for sharing this it looks so good.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Monique! Oh I like Dr. Oz, too ~ his information is so accessible. Such beautiful family, too.

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  7. Wow, what a unique and lovely combination! I love all the colors and textures Mari!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hello Chris, it's great to meet up with you here, and thank you for joining in! I would be very happy to come follow your blog as well, I'll get right over there to sign up. Cheers!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Hi Chris! Thank you ~ I wasn't sure about this recipe but we were pleasantly surprised. (I would stop short of telling any young ones at the table that "we're having pizza tonight!", as I'm quite certain they would think it was a dirty trick! ;) Thank you for coming by!

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for your comments, friends ~ they make my day!

A Sampling of my food . . .

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