Broccoli Mac and Cheese
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This Broccoli Mac and Cheese recipe is made with a creamy, flavorful cheddar cheese sauce, and rich, buttery Ritz cracker topping, creating the best baked mac and cheese recipe out there! It’s so flavorful, easy to make, and you can serve it as a main dish or side dish.
Table of contents
For years, this Broccoli Cheese Casserole has been one of the most popular side dishes around the holiday season. And ever since I started serving it at Thanksgiving, my entire family has also requested that I make it at Christmas. Needless to say, everyone loves this cheesy casserole, from kids to adults!
I decided to take inspiration from this popular casserole recipe and turn it into the best baked mac and cheese recipe!
What makes this recipe the best?
- The cheesy sauce is made with sharp cheddar cheese, half and half and the perfect combination of spices to make it extra creamy and flavorful!
- The topping is made with crumbled Ritz crackers, melted butter and more cheddar cheese for a buttery, crunchy topping that’s bursting with flavor!
- The mac and cheese is baked perfectly so the sauce is still creamy, while the topping is perfectly crunchy. The combination of textures is absolutely delicious!
This recipe only takes 20 minutes to prep, making it an easy dish to toss together for a weeknight meal or Thanksgiving side dish!
Ingredients
- Macaroni noodles – you could also use another small pasta noodle, like shells, rotini or penne.
- Butter – I recommend using unsalted butter, so that you can add salt to your taste. If using salted butter, you’ll want to reduce the amount of added salt by 1 teaspoon.
- All-purpose flour – used to make a roux, to thicken the cheese sauce.
- Salt + black pepper + garlic powder + paprika – to season the mac and cheese.
- Mustard powder – the acidity and tanginess of the mustard powder helps balance out the richness in this dish. It’s a secret ingredient that you should always add to mac and cheese! You may also see mustard powder labeled as dry mustard or ground mustard at the grocery store. They’re all the same and you can use them interchangeably. If you don’t have mustard powder, 2 teaspoons of dijon mustard can be used in it’s place.
- Half-and-half – you could also use heavy cream, but I do not recommend using milk for this recipe. It just doesn’t produce that creaminess we’re looking for in the cheese sauce.
- Shredded cheddar cheese – to make the ultimate cheesy sauce for this mac and cheese recipe, you’ll need 6 1/4 cups shredded cheddar cheese. I recommend purchasing a 32 ounce block of cheddar cheese at the grocery store and grating the cheese at home. Pre-shredded cheese in a bag contains anti-caking agents, which means it won’t melt as well into the sauce.
- Fresh broccoli florets – frozen broccoli can be used to make this recipe, but I don’t find that the texture remains the same, so I recommend fresh whenever possible. Always make sure to break up larger florets into smaller pieces for this recipe.
- Buttery round crackers (such as Ritz) – you can use breadcrumbs in place of the Ritz crackers. But I love the Ritz cracker twist on a traditional mac and cheese topping, and I think you will too!
Instructions
I’ve included step by step photos below to make this broccoli mac and cheese recipe super easy to follow at home. For the full detailed recipe instructions and ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
To start this recipe, you’ll want to bring a large pot of salted water to boil, and cook the macaroni noodles according to the package directions. Drain the noodles and set them aside, while you prepare the cheese sauce.
- Make a roux. Melt butter in a large skillet, or dutch oven, on the stove over medium-high heat. Once the butter has melted, sprinkle flour over the butter, then whisk to combine, to form a roux.
- Season the roux. Add salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika and mustard powder to the roux. Whisk to combine the spices with the roux and cook for 1-2 minutes to bring out the flavors of the spices.
- Add half-and-half. Reduce the heat on the stove to medium-low and slowly pour in the half and half. Whisk to combine it with the seasoned roux. Simmer on the stove for 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally. This will help thicken the sauce.
- Add cheese. Turn the heat on the stove off. Add 6 cups of shredded cheddar cheese and stir until the cheese melts into the sauce.
- Combine everything. Once the cheese sauce is smooth and creamy, add the cooked macaroni noodles and broccoli florets to the pan with the cheese sauce. Toss everything together to coat the noodles and broccoli completely in the cheese sauce.
- Transfer everything to a 9 inch x 13 inch casserole dish.
- Make the topping. In a small bowl, combine crushed Ritz crackers, shredded cheddar cheese and melted butter. Sprinkle the mixture evenly over the mac and cheese in the casserole dish.
- Bake the mac and cheese in the oven at 350°F for 30 minutes.
Recipe tips
- You can make this recipe ahead of time and store it, covered in the fridge, for up to 3 days before baking. I do recommend waiting to put the Ritz cracker topping on the dish until right before popping it in the oven. This way the crackers will stay crispy.
- If using frozen broccoli, be sure to thaw it first, either in the refrigerator or microwave. Pat the broccoli dry after it’s thawed so that no extra moisture gets added to the mac and cheese.
- You DO NOT need to blanch the broccoli before making the mac and cheese. Adding fresh broccoli right into the mac and cheese means you end up with broccoli that keeps it’s shape and doesn’t turn into mush. I find the texture to be one of the best parts of this mac and cheese.
- If you want to switch up the flavor of the cheese sauce, feel free to use 4 cups of cheddar cheese and 2 cups of gruyere cheese or swiss cheese.
Dietary options
To make gluten free broccoli mac and cheese, use gluten-free macaroni noodles. Replace the flour with cornstarch, but only use half of the amount of cornstarch. Because cornstarch has more thickening power than flour, you’ll only need 2 tablespoons of cornstarch to replace the 1/4 cup flour.
Replace the Ritz crackers in the topping with 1 cup gluten free panko breadcrumbs.
This recipe is vegetarian, using the ingredients listed above.
Storage and reheating
Store leftover broccoli mac and cheese in the refrigerator for up to 6 days.
To reheat the mac and cheese in the oven, place it in an oven-safe dish and cover with foil. Reheat at 350°F for 20-25 minutes, or until heated through.
To reheat it in the microwave, place one serving in a microwave-safe bowl and reheat for 2-3 minutes.
What to serve it with
You can literally serve this recipe as a side dish anytime of the year, it’s not just for the holidays! It’s great with grilled chicken, smoked pork chops or steaks. Try it with any of these main dishes.
- Marinated Grilled Sirloin Steaks
- Smoked Pork Chops
- Roasted Prime Rib
- Smoked Pulled Pork
- BBQ Chicken
- Smoked Tri Tip
- Grilled Chicken Thighs
- Smoked Turkey Breast
- Cranberry Glazed Turkey Breast
You can also serve this broccoli mac and cheese as a meal. Serve it just as the recipe is written, or add 1-2 cups of shredded rotisserie chicken, pulled pork, or a cup of crumbled, cooked bacon right into the dish with the broccoli.
More cheesy recipes
If you’re a cheese-lover like me, then you have to try these other popular easy, cheesy recipes!
Broccoli Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
Mac and Cheese
- 16 ounces macaroni noodles
- ¼ cup unsalted butter
- ¼ cup flour, or 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 3 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons black pepper
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 2 teaspoons mustard powder
- 3 cups half-and-half
- 6 ¼ cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
- 1 pound fresh broccoli florets, chopped or broken into small florets
Buttery Cracker Topping
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, melted
- 30 buttery crackers, like Ritz (crushed) (or 1 cup breadcrumbs)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to boil on the stove top.
- Add the macaroni noodles and cook according to package directions, until al dente.
- Drain the noodles and set aside.
- Add the ¼ cup butter to a large skillet, or dutch oven, on the stove over medium-high heat.
- Once melted, whisk in the flour to form a roux.
- Season the roux with the salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika and mustard powder. Cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Reduce the heat on the stove to medium-low and add the half-and-half.
- Simmer on the stove for 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Turn the heat on the stove off and stir in 6 cups shredded cheddar cheese, reserving ¼ cup for topping the mac and cheese.
- Once the cheese sauce is smooth and creamy, add the cooked macaroni noodles and broccoli florets.
- Toss until the broccoli florets and pasta noodles are coated in the sauce.
- Transfer everything to a large oven-safe baking dish. I used a 9 inch by 13 inch casserole dish.
- In a small bowl, combine the ¼ cup melted butter, crushed crackers and reserved ¼ cup shredded cheddar cheese.
- Sprinkle the cracker topping evenly over the casserole.
- Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
Notes
- This recipe can easily serve 6 people as a meal, or 10-12 people as a side dish.
- You can make this recipe ahead of time and store it, covered in the fridge, for up to 3 days before baking. I do recommend waiting to put the Ritz cracker topping on the dish until right before popping it in the oven. This way the crackers will stay crispy.
- If using frozen broccoli, be sure to thaw it first, either in the refrigerator or microwave. Pat the broccoli dry after it’s thawed so that no extra moisture gets added to the mac and cheese.
- You DO NOT need to blanch the broccoli before making the mac and cheese. Adding fresh broccoli right into the mac and cheese means you end up with broccoli that keeps it’s shape and doesn’t turn into mush.
- To make this recipe gluten free, use gluten-free macaroni noodles. Replace the flour with cornstarch, but only use half of the amount of cornstarch. Because cornstarch has more thickening power than flour, you’ll only need 2 tablespoons of cornstarch to replace the 1/4 cup flour. Replace the Ritz crackers in the topping with 1 cup gluten free panko breadcrumbs.
- This recipe is vegetarian, using the ingredients listed above.
- Store leftover broccoli mac and cheese in the refrigerator for up to 6 days.
- To reheat the mac and cheese in the oven, place it in an oven-safe dish and cover with foil. Reheat at 350°F for 20-25 minutes, or until heated through.
- To reheat it in the microwave, place one serving in a microwave-safe bowl and reheat for 2-3 minutes.
Nutrition Facts
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