I’m Having an Affair with Panko

I know, I know.  I went on and on about how the lemon ricotta cookies were “the ones,” but I’ve found a new love; Toasted Panko.

I feel bad being fickle, but the Panko toasted up so nicely and gave my broccoli such a nice crunch, I was helpless.

This happened to my mother too. She went through phases: mushroom and wine, Velveeta Cheese, peanut butter, hot dogs and finally she stuck with chocolate chips.  (Thank God because the Velveeta Cheese and hot dogs would have killed us.)

You can’t go wrong with chocolate chips in banana or zucchini bread. Right out of the oven when the chips are all melty — you swoon. If you need a fantastic, buttery banana bread  recipe, go to my I’m Not Ellen Degeneres and Maybe That’s OK post. It’s at the bottom.

Please don’t judge me for my new Panko obsession because as soon as you try this, you’ll be under it’s crunchy spell.  I came across this recipe when I saw an article on Epicurious called, 57  Things You Can Do To Be a Better Cook Right Now. The broccoli recipe was on another page, but I noticed it and decided to make it for my kids, who have never jumped up and cheered for broccoli.

It’s broccoli with olive oil, garlic, a little butter, lemon zest and toasted Panko crumbs.  My fellow foodie, Kimberly, suggested adding Parmesan cheese, which sounds wonderful too.  I pretty much followed their recipe, but added butter, used less Panko, sprinkled it with crushed red pepper, but added no lemon zest.

It tasted so good, we devoured it all.  I even tried zucchini sauteed with onions and sprinkled with toasted Panko crumbs, which were also good. I want to try broccoli with sesame oil, garlic, toasted sesame seeds and toasted Panko, which sounds amazing too.

So, here’s the recipe I made and a link to the Epicurious recipe. Try these and I bet you start sprinkling toasted Panko on all your veggies, your husband, your wife…wonder how they’d be on lemon ricotta cookies? Would that be a threesome?

Broccoli with Olive Oil  and Toasted Panko

2 bunches of broccoli

1/3 cup olive oil

1 Tsp. butter

5 to 6 large cloves of garlic minced

1/4 cup Panko crumbs toasted

Crushed Red Pepper

Salt to taste

Before you start, put the Panko in a small saute pan over low heat. Watch it and stir it until it turns golden brown. Set it aside.

Cut the broccoli up into florets and steam it.  I hate throwing away the stems because it seems so wasteful. If you peel them, they taste just fine, so peel the big thick stems and put them in the steamer too.  (Don’t let it cook too long, you’ll finish it in the oil and it will cook a bit there.)

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil, butter and garlic about two minutes. As soon as the broccoli is done, pour it into the pan with the olive oil and garlic mixture and stir it around to soak up the oil. Sprinkle it with salt and crushed red pepper and just before serving, toss in the Panko crumbs. Serve and feel the crunchy love.