Baked Potato with Broccoli and Cheese

I like baked potatoes. I also like broccoli and cheese together. So...what could be better than a baked potato, topped with steamed broccoli, and smothered in cheese sauce? Mmm.

Ingredients:
Baking potatoes (I use russet), as many as you need to feed everyone
Broccoli florets (I would say 1/2 to 1 cup per person)
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour
1 1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cup shredded cheese (I use cheddar)
a pinch of salt and pepper

Directions:
Bake the potatoes. To bake, poke holes in the potato with a fork to allow steam to escape. Exploding potatoes are a bad thing. ;) To bake in an oven, wrap in foil and cook about an hour at 350. In the microwave, wrap it in saran wrap and microwave it for 8-ish minutes, and let it sit in the microwave for a couple minutes to continue cooking. Potatoes should be tender all the way through.

Next, steam the broccoli florets. You can use a steamer bag in the microwave, or do it the old fashioned way. In a pot, place a little water, then a steamer basket. The water should not go over the steamer basket. If you don't have a steamer basket, you can use a metal mesh strainer, or a pile of silverware in the bottom of the pan. Just make sure that the water doesn't reach over whatever you use. You want the steam to rise and cook the broccoli, not boil the broccoli IN the water.

To make the sauce, start out with the butter. Melt it over medium heat, then whisk in the flour to make a roux. Add the milk, stirring frequently. Let it heat up, and make sure the roux and the milk are mixed well. When the milk is warmed up, add the cheese, stirring frequently. When the cheese is melted and mixed well into the milk mixture, reduce heat and simmer for a few minutes.

Cut a line in the top of the potato, and push the sides to open up the potato. Put the broccoli on top/inside the potato. Pour a generous amount of the cheese sauce over the potato and broccoli. Serve immediately, and enjoy. :) Yum.