Cauliflower and Broccoli Pesto Casserole

February 10, 2018

I had a bunch of cooked broccoli and cauliflower left over from dinner one night and knew that no one in my family would really want to eat the leftover vegetables as I can rarely can get them to eat any vegetables.

I remembered how well my kids loved the cauliflower Alfredo we had made and I thought if I mashed up the cauliflower and broccoli and served it with pasta they might not even notice... and I was right!

They RAVED over this dish and everyone gobbled it right up.

Ingredients:

1/2 package cream cheese (4 ounces)
2/3 cup olive oil
2 packages Knorr pesto mix
4 cups pureed broccoli and cauliflower
1 cup milk
1 box of your favorite pasta
2 cups shredded cheese

To make the casserole:

I took my leftover cauliflower and broccoli and ran it all through the food processor until I had a fairly thick green paste and then I set it aside.

In a medium sized sauce pan I combined the olive oil, pesto mix, and cream cheese until the cream cheese had melted into the oil. Then I added in the pureed vegetables and kept stirring until I had a nice smooth sauce.

While the sauce was cooking I boiled up some water and cooked a box of pasta according to the package directions.

Once I drained the pasta, I added the sauce mixture and spread it out into a glass baking dish and topped it with shredded cheese.

I threw my casserole in the freezer at this point and when I pulled it out two weeks later I let it thaw in the refrigerator for the day and then baked it in a 350 degree oven for about an hour until it was nice and hot and the cheese was golden brown.