Cream Sauces

Béchamel sauce or as country cooks know it white sauce.  This is very basic sauce and one that should be learned early in your cooking experience.  It is often used in savory pies and casseroles, such as chicken pot pie and moussaka and even seafood or vegetable lasagna.  It blends flavor and holds the ingredients together and it can be used is a thickening in soups and stews.  Béchamel Sauce is a white roux with milk.

 

Roux is the basis of this sauce. Review the last posting on roux.  Try making a white roux, a medium roux and dark roux are usually used espagrole sauce or brown sauces. 

Melt the butter and add an equal part flour.  Whisk and cook the roux. For Béchamel Sauce do not cook the roux long.  Add some milk and the roux will instantly thicken, whisk, add more milk and whisk.  Continue to do this until the milk is used up or you have the desired consistency.  Salt and white or black pepper can be added.  Other seasonings, like cloves or nutmeg are often added.  I rarely measure the milk, I just add a little at time until the sauce is what I want.

 

Dairy for white sauces can vary.  As I stated already, milk is often used, but cream, sour cream and yogurt can be used in some sauces.  Think about how you will use the sauce and decide on a dairy product that will enhance the overall dish.  For instance, if you want a white sauce to go with sautéed chicken and mushrooms, you may want to consider using cream rather than milk for a richer sauce.

 

Types of sauces in this category are Sauce Béchamel, Sauce Crème, Sauce Mornay, Sauce Soubise, Cheese Sauce, Nantua Sauce, Alfredo Sauce, Honey Mustard Sauce, and

 

This Week’s Challenge - Make a Béchamel sauce

 

            Decide how you will use your Béchamel sauce.  Use it in a recipe or sauce for a meat.  Make your roux and finish your Béchamel sauce.  Think about what you can add to it to enhance your dish.  You may decide to try one of the above variations.

 

Tip for this Week – Use unsalted butter for sauces.

           

            Unsalted butter does not burn as easily as salted butter.  It also allows better control of the salt in the sauce.  Some cooks prefer using clarified butter.  This is easy to make with a pound of unsalted butter.  Melt the butter and remove the white, foamy part of the melted butter.  Discard the white part.  It is very bitter and not good for anything.   It is also the part of the butter that burns easily. The remaining yellow liquid is the clarified butter or ghee.  It will not burn as easily as butter since the white part is removed.  Use your clarified butter for dipping seafood or artichokes. It can also be used for sautéing.

 

 

This Week in Punkin’s Kitchen

 

Béchamel Sauce

 

melt the butter in a skillet or sauce pan.
 

Add the flour and cook.

Add the milk an continue to cook a
little longer, but do not allow it to boil.

print recipe

Bechamel Sauce

by Unknown September-16-2016

This is also know as white sauce and is very basic. It is often used n soups and casserole.

Ingredients

• 2 T Butter, unsalted or clarified
• 2 T Flour
• 1- 1 1/2 C Milk
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Melt the butter in a sauce pan.2. Add the flour and stir with a whisk.3. Cook on how heat stirring constantly for about two minutes. Do not let it brown.4. Add about ½ C milk and stir constantly to blend with the flour. It may be lumpy, but keep whisking until it thickens.5. Add another ½ C milk and blend it in with the whisk. 6. Add the remaining milk a little at a time to the desired thickness of the sauce.7. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Use white pepper if you want the sauce to be as white as possible. Black pepper can be used for a stronger flavor.

Details

Prep time: 5 mins Cook time: 15 mins Total time: 20 mins Yield: 1 C

Cheese Sauce

            This is a basic cheese sauce made with cheddar cheese, but most cheese can be used.  This is perfect for making baked macaroni and cheese, a sauce over vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower, or over any pasta, or potatoes.  I like to use it in mashed potatoes.  Try using different cheeses.  Some recipes call for mustard or other spices and herbs.

The ingredients



Make the béchamel sauce above.





Add 2 C grated cheddar cheese to the
 bevhael sauce and continue cooking.
Do not allow the sauce to boil. 

 

At first it will be lumpy, continue whisking
and cooking.

Once the cheese is melted it should be smooth.

 

Taste and adjust seasoning

 

Breaded chicken cutlet with steamed
broccoli and cheese sauce



 

print recipe

Cheese sauce

by Unknown September-16-2016

This is a basic cheese sauce made with cheddar cheese, but most cheese can be used. This is perfect for making baked macaroni and cheese, a sauce over vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower, or over any pasta, or potatoes. I like to use it in mashed potatoes. Try using different cheeses. Some recipes call for mustard or other spices and herbs.

Ingredients

• 2 T Butter, unsalted
• 2 T Flour
• 1 to 1 1/2 C Milk
• 2 C Cheddar cheese, grated
• 2 T Parmesan, grated
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 t Dry mustard (Optional)
• 1 t Paprika (Optional)

Instructions

1. Make Béchamel sauce with the butter, flour and milk.2. Add the flour and stir with a whisk.3. Cook on how heat stirring constantly for about two minutes. Do not let it brown.4. Add about ½ C milk and stir constantly to blend with the flour. It may be lumpy, but keep whisking until it thickens.5. Add another ½ C milk and blend it in with the whisk. 6. Add the remaining milk a little at a time to the desired thickness of the sauce.7. When the Béchamel sauce is done, add the cheese and whisk until the cheese is melted.8. Add one of the optional ingredients. I usually do not add them.9. Taste and season with salt and pepper.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 20 mins Total time: 30 mins Yield: 1-1 1/2 C

Salad of the Week

 

Grape Salad

            This time of year grapes are in season and at their best.  This is a refreshing end of summer treat that make a great side dish, lunch or dessert.  It is simple and requires no cooking. Serve ice cold.

The ingredients

Place the yogurt in a small bowl and
add the honey and mint.

Stir to blend

 

I like to use a combination of seedless
grapes.  Any grapes will work.

 

Add the yogurt to the grapes and stir to
cover all the grapes with yogurt.
 

Chill thoroughly before serving,

print recipe

Grape Salad

by Unknown September-16-2016

This time of year grapes are in season and at their best. This is a refreshing end of summer treat. It is simple and requires no cooking. Serve ice cold.

Ingredients

• 4 C Grapes, removed from the vine and washed.
• 1 1/2 C Greek yourt, plain
• 1 T Honey
• 1 T Mint, fresh and chopped or 1 t dried mint flakes

Instructions

1. Place the grapes in a large bowl.2. In a smaller bowl, mix the yogurt, honey and mint.3. Add this to the grapes and stir to coat the grapes.4. Chill until ice cold.5. Serve as a side dish or a refreshing summer dessert.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: Total time: 10 mins Yield: 4 cups, 8-10 servings


Happy Cooking!