roasted broccoli with panko bread crumbs and cheddar

SCHOOLS OUT!!!!! which means summer's here. which means plenty of BBQs, cooking (aka new recipes), beer drinking, porch sitting, tomato growing, and beach going.

After binge eating all last week during finals (and by binge eating, i mean i was on a diet of: m&ms, reeses peanut butter cups, burritos, like 10 bottles of seltzer water, a crapload of coffee, tons of fried chicken, and every single frozen meal trader joes has to offer), I need to go on a diet in order to fit into this bridesmaid dress for my cousin's wedding.

(don't worry I plan on writing a full finals week report. parts of it were quite entertaining. parts of it were quite awful. actually, who cares because it's over!)

So you thought I would post a healthy recipe right? Of course not. I had to go ahead and cook broccoli in bread crumbs and cheese. I can't help it. I think I am addicted to junk food. I'm going to have to slowly wean myself off of it or something.

Whatever. I made this recipe tonight for dinner...a pretty tasty way to eat broccoli. No need to be precise with any of the measurements (my favorite way to cook!).

Also, for those of you unfamiliar with panko bread crumbs, it's a japanese bread crumb, but it's pretty mainstream. I got mine at trader joes, but you can probably find it at any regular grocery store.

Roasted Broccoli with Panko Bread Crumbs and Cheddar
Ingredients:
A bag of broccoli florets or a couple of heads, rinsed and trimmed
1/3 cup of panko bread crumbs (I just eyeballed it. I probably used more than 1/3 cup)
1/4 cup of grated cheddar cheese (Again, I just eyeballed it)
Olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

In a mixing bowl, toss broccoli florets in olive oil, salt, and pepper. (feel free to add other spices if you wish!)

Spread bread crumbs into a cake pan and place in the oven for 2 minutes or until lightly toasted.

Remove break crumbs from the oven and toss with broccoli. Put it all back into the oven and roast until the broccoli is tender, about 8-10 minutes.

Remove from oven and toss with cheddar cheese. Serve immediately!