Family, Marieda Dalton
10 ounces frozen broccoli, cooked – remove any tough stem pieces and chop
1 cup cooked white rice, measured after cooked (not Minute Rice)
1/2 stick margarine (I use real butter)
1/2 onion, chopped finely
1 1/2 cans of cream of mushroom soup (16 ounces)
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup cheez whiz
1/2 cup milk
1. Saute onion in margarine/butter. This is a long, slow process. The temperature should be low on the skillet (I set mine stove top on 3 or 4). It can take 20 minutes or more to reach a golden color on the onion. Do not drain the butter as it is added to dish. (I usually cook my rice and broccoli during this step). Rushing this step ruins the recipe as the onions can become bitter if cooked too quickly. Adding them raw sacrifices both flavor and texture. I have overcooked the onion, and the recipe still works OK.
After the onion is golden: I like to stir my chopped, cooked broccoli into the sauteed onions to soak up some of the butter and onion flavor. Then, I usually add the cooked rice to soak up the remaining buttery flavor.
Sometimes, I don’t have enough time to complete the dish, and this is one optional spot to stop for the next day.
2. Heat the soup, water, cheez whiz and milk until warm. This is a really important step. I remembered how Grandma’s rice casserole used to look. I couldn’t duplicate this look until I heated the soup, water, cheez whiz, and milk when mixing. Then, it looks just like hers. She didn’t write this down, but I’m sure she heated these ingredients. The bonus factor is that it stirs so much easily warm (probably why she did it).
This is the second optional point to stop until the next day. I think Grandma always mixed hers up the day before. The flavors seem to mix a little better if it’s been in the fridge overnight.
3. Bake the casserole at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes. Everything is really already cooked, so bubbly is what you are going for.
Enjoy!