Last updated on July 20th, 2016
NEED A CHIC AND DELICIOUS first-course or side-dish? Consider this Timbale of Broccoli. It’s light and airy. It’s softly-scented with nutmeg. And it’s really easy to make:
Remember the Timbale of Spinach & Ham we made last winter? The broccoli version is even easier to do.
You like easy elegance, right?
Timbale of Broccoli
Ingredients for about 8 servings as a first course or a side-dish
4 cups broccoli florets, from a 1 lb (or larger) head of fresh broccoli
5 eggs
Seasonings – a big pinch of salt, grinds of black (or white) pepper, and 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
2/3 cup bread crumbs (I used gluten-free tapioca bread crumbs)
2/3 cup grated Swiss cheese
1 cup hot milk
Optional garnish: buttered, toasted bread crumbs, and/or a few cooked broccoli florets
To start, grab a head of perfectly-fresh broccoli…
And cut it into florets.
(You can use the chunky “trunk” of the broccoli, too. Just cut off the thick skin, and you’ll find delicious, tender flesh inside.)
Cook the florets in a pot of boiling, salted water until stems are fork-tender — about 4 minutes. Or, steam them in a steamer-basket.
Transfer the greens to a clean terry towel. Blot dry.
Now drop the greens into the bowl of your food processor…
And spin ’em around until a fairly-smooth puree is achieved — about 30 seconds.
Then crack 5 eggs into a big bowl…
And whisk them up, baby.
Whisk in a big pinch of salt…
And several grinds of black (or white) pepper…
And a small pinch (about 1/8 teaspoon) of nutmeg.
At this point, exchange your wire whisk for a rubber spatula.
A green spatula will work best.
Stir in 2/3 cup bread crumbs…
And a handful (about 2/3 cup) grated Swiss cheese…
And the broccoli puree.
Can you tell how delicious this timbale is going to be?
Stirring all the while, gradually add one cup of hot milk.
Wanna be really decadent? Substitute heavy cream for the milk.
Wanna be only partially decadent? Use half-and-half.
Grab a Charlotte mold (or any round, straight-sided oven-proof dish that will hold 5-6 cups — a small souffle dish will work)…
And spray it with vegetable spray.
Then cut out a round of parchment paper, and lay it in the bottom of the pan. Give the paper a light coating of vegetable spray, too.
Ladle the broccoli mixture into the mold…
Then set the mold in a deep baking dish or a Dutch oven.
Pour enough boiling water into the larger dish to reach about half-way up the side of the mold. This is what the French call a “Bain Marie.”
And please note my new electric kettle! It boils water much, much faster than my traditional stove-top kettle. I’ll write more about this nifty appliance in a future post.
Bake the timbale on the lower-middle rack of a preheated, 375F oven for 45-50 minutes.
The timbale is done when a wooden skewer inserted in the center of the dish comes out clean.
Here’s the fun part: Center a serving platter or cake-stand over the mold…
Invert the two…
Aah, perfection!
Peel off the parchment paper…
And then decide how (and if) you want to decorate your timbale.
I adorned mine with buttered, toasted breadcrumbs and a raw broccoli floret.
And then I scraped the crumbs off. Why? Because I decided a few steamed broccoli florets would make a nicer garnish.
Then I changed my mind again, and wished I’d let the crumbs remain.
Welcome to my world, folks.
My big, indecisive world.
Tip: Decorate the timbale any darn way you wish. Or, just leave it naked, and eat the thing already.
Adorned or not, this timbale is delicious.
And it’s classy enough to serve to a Dowager Countess.
And here, for your convenience, is a photo-free, copy-and-paste version of the above recipe:
Timbale of Broccoli
Ingredients for about 8 servings as a first course
4 cups of broccoli florets (from a 1 lb or larger head of fresh broccoli), boiled or steamed until fork-tender
5 eggs
Seasonings – a big pinch of salt, grinds of black (or white) pepper, and a scant 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg
2/3 cup fresh bread crumbs (gluten-free crumbs are fine, but they must be fresh, not dried)
2/3 cup grated Swiss cheese
1 cup hot milk
Optional garnish: buttered, toasted bread crumbs, and/or a few cooked broccoli floretsSpecial Equipment — a food processor; a round, oven-proof mold with straight sides that will hold 4-5 cups (a Charlotte mold or a souffle dish will work); a piece of parchment paper; a deep baking dish or Dutch oven to hold the mold in a water bath; a kettle of boiling water
Preliminaries: Spray the mold with vegetable spray; place a cut-out round of parchment paper in the bottom of the mold; lightly coat the paper with vegetable spray.
Arrange oven rack at the lower-middle position; preheat oven to 375 F.
Puree the cooked broccoli in a food processor; set aside.
Using a wire whisk, beat 5 eggs in a large bowl. Then, using a rubber spatula or a spoon, stir in each of the following: first the bread crumbs, then the cheese, and finally, the broccoli puree.
Stirring all the while, gradually add the hot milk to the broccoli mixture.
Pour the broccoli mixture into the prepared mold; set the mold in a deep baking dish or Dutch oven. Pour enough boiling water into the larger dish to reach approximately half-way up the sides of the mold.
Bake in the preheated 375 F oven for 45-50 minutes. The timbale is done when a wooden skewer inserted in the center of the mold comes out clean.
To unmold: Place a platter or cake-stand over the mold; invert the two. Peel off the parchment paper.
Garnish with a few steamed or boiled broccoli florets, or with buttered, toasted breadcrumbs and broccoli florets.
Serve hot or cold.
Promise me you’ll try this Timbale of Broccoli, okay?
It’s so delicious you’ll want to lick the plate.
Tip: Never lick a plate when the Dowager Countess is watching.
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Related Posts:
Chicken & Mushrooms in Tarragon Cream
Homemade Spaetzle with Butter & Herbs
Timbale of Spinach & Ham
Madfortulips says
I have made this before, but it has been a number of years ! The recipe I used was from “Juliia”, got rave reviews when I made it too 😀
Dennis R says
Now I see why you ‘passed’ on the Pinot with Me & Linda up at the Woodland Garden…..(Hope you enjoyed it afterwards)
Kevin Lee Jacobs says
Madfortulips – Yes, delicious!
Dennis R – Thanks for the Pinot Grigio — enjoying a glass now!
Brenda Johnson says
I loved this!!!! Light, creamy and so flavorful!!! The nutmeg really makes it sing!! (and what made with broccoli isn’t healthy for you?) Delicious indeed- and worth chancing a licking of the plate in my opinion!
Cathie says
Hi Kevin: I truly enjoy your website and wanted to tell you tonight I made the Classic tomato
Pie as part of our dinner. It was simply DELICIOUS!!!! Our company enjoyed it too and went home with a copy of your recipe thank you for sharing such a terrific website.
Cathie in Pennsylvania
Maria says
I will prepare it tonight!!!
Thank you for sharing it!!
Have a good week!
Paula Mello says
Gorgeous! I guess the Dowager Countess will be pleased 🙂
Beverly, zone 6 eastern PA says
We just finished watching our own DVD copies of the last Downton Abbey season. (Our third time viewing it.) How nice to see the Dowager Countess referenced here, she feels like a close confidante. I’m sure she would love your Broccoli Timbale. I need to find myself one of those nifty pans.
Mary says
Thanks for making me laugh twice this morning!! Once for this post (breadcrumbs? no breadcrumbs?) (I’ve done this with frosting a cake!!!) and again for the Florida Weave post. I didn’t even know what a Florida Weave was, and I was laughing out loud!!!
Now seriously, I need to be inspired to tackle the weeds in my garden and the lack of creativity in my hash-slingin’.
JaneM says
Lol a green spatula works better 😀
Dori says
I bet the dowager countess waited till you were not looking and then licked HER plate.
But I am wondering whether you unmold the timbale immediately or wait till it sets up a while?
Kevin Lee Jacobs says
Hi Dori – Once the timbale is done, it’s done! So you can unmold it immediately. If you need to delay unmolding, the timbale can stay in the turned-off oven for 30 minutes or so.
Carole says
A terrific presentation. You should really have a wider audience (probably not grammatically correct).
Tina Knowlton says
Ah, tonight for dinner! And since the DC seems to be at your house, I can lick my plate with impunity!
Judith says
This looks mahvelous, dahling Kevin . . .
I consume so much broccoli my husband thinks I should be green. I will definitely try it. Whenever I try something from your site, like the apple tart, my husband loves it so much he photographs it. That’s all to your skill at presentation and at teaching how to do it.
I agree with all the compliments you got from this entry re your personality and presentation. You deserve a wider audience; which the Dowager Countess Violet Crawley of Downton Abbey obviously knows. Your skill is the knockout, but also, you seem to have so much fun with everything you do; a distinct humanity, a sheer kindness, shines through all your entries.
Best of luck to you . . and to your funny, appreciative followers.
Judith
Laurie Jimenez says
That looks so good, I would risk a head shake/eye roll for plate licking!
Michele Layne says
Kevin do you think you could make this without dairy? Substitutions for milk like soy milk or soy cheese?
La Contessa says
I promise to try!Looks beautiful!
Now back to the tomatoe pie!My family liked better with the phyllo dough!The biscuit dough was too sweet they said!I’m a gluten free gal and tried anyway, I thought it to be pretty tasty………then again I’m American born and bred and will eat most anything and think its good!I LOVED THE PRESENTATION OF IT……………and how easy it was!
Love your posts your a character .Too few of “US” in this world!
Check out my garden on my site……….www.vintagehenhouse.com.
Please leave me a comment as I would LOVE that……….to do so you must click on the TITLE of the POST and scroll down!
I’ll let you know how the broccoli turns out……………..Contessa in California!
Diane H Hinkle says
I truly cannot decide if I would like this or not. But I will try anything once. And sometimes I am surprised. My favorite part of broccoli is the stem peeled and cut into coins. And either steamed or just eaten raw.
I will let you know if and when I try it and if I like it or not. Thanks for sharing.~
Angela Willis says
Think I could substitute ground Gluten free crackers for the bread crumbs? Need to make it Gluten Free… looks delicious and oh, so elegant!
Kevin Lee Jacobs says
Hi Angela – Crackers won’t work, but you can certainly use gluten-free bread crumbs, just as I did. Tapioca bread — which is GF — worked like a charm.
Casey Cavasher says
Wo, the breadcrumbs must be fresh, not dried…does that mean you simply tear slices of bread into tiny pieces?
Donna Schumacher says
Love your presentations of recipes. As soon as my tomatoes are ripe, I’m trying the tomato pie and the Timbale of Broccoli as soon as I get to town to buy it again. Live 20 miles from town so can’t always try at a moments notice. Sound yummy.
Kevin Lee Jacobs says
Hi Casey Cavasher – To make fresh bread crumbs: Roughly tear some bread, and then grind it up in a food processor or a blender. Surplus can be frozen.
Tiffany says
Ahhhh….you’re a master at coming up with recipes for a vegetable I really don’t like, making something anyone would love. Can’t wait to try this since the Zucchini Fritters were so wonderful this should surely follow in the “wonderful” category. And, it should be noted I don’t like Broccoli. Well, neither did I like Zucchini before the fritter recipe. Thank you for your absolutely wonderful and imaginative website.
kim says
Hi Kevin, I think I’ll try this. What is a good side….salad w/ apple and walnut, and , homemade french bread / artisan barley honey bread 🙂 Carrots!
Karen says
I always wait until the Dowager C turns her head….fingers also do well for plate scraping. Great recipe, Kevin. Thanks as always for your fantastic blog.
Jill says
You crack me up, Kevin. Thanks, I’m in need of it today.
regi says
I always smile when I read your posts. And then my tummy smile when I actually make the recipes. Thanks for this one, I need a new thanksgiving veg side since i am vegetarian and my dinner is always a challenge. My spatula is blue. Hope that’s ok. 😉