I have learned many practical cooking skills over the years. My mom, my home economics teachers and the cooks on Food Network have provided this valuable information.
One of the valuable techniques my home economics teachers taught me was how to make a white sauce. I have found that knowing how to make white sauce gives me a base to create a variety of sauces.
There are three components to white sauce -- fat (butter, margarine, oil, drippings, etc.), flour (which is the emulsifier) and milk. The measurements are tablespoons for the fat and flour and cups for the liquid.
To make one cup of white sauce, you will need 1 Tablespoon butter, 1 Tablespoon flour and 1 cup milk.
Melt your butter in a saucepan over medium-low to medium heat. Be careful not to burn.
To the butter, add 1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour.
Cook and stir about one minute so the flour will lose its "raw" taste.
Slowly add one cup of milk. Add salt to taste.
Cook and stir until sauce thickens (this took about 5 minutes). You may need to slightly increase the heat.
Voila! White sauce!
Now if I want cheese sauce to serve over something or to make mac-n-cheese or broccoli casserole, I need to add one cup of shredded cheese, any flavor, at the end, stirring until the cheese is melted.
Another variation is to add some parsley (fresh or dried) at the end and add to drained, boiled potatoes for "Parsley Potatoes."
To make a tasty pasta side dish, boil 1 pound of your favorite pasta to al dente (we like penne). Drain and set aside. Saute two cloves of garlic in the butter before adding the flour. At the end of the white sauce process, add parsley and 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese. Pour over the pasta.
This technique is the same you use for white "milk" gravy like we're going to have for dinner tonight. After frying the chicken breasts, I will add flour to the drippings in the pan, salt and pepper to taste, and then milk, stirring until it is thick.
Do you make white sauce? Do you have any variations you'd like to share? Post them here. I'd love to hear your ideas.
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Judges 10-12; Psalm 87; Mark 6:45-56; I Corinthians 11:17-34
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I will definately try this. Thanks!!
ReplyDeleteI will definately try this! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteOk, now you have my ears pricked. First you talk about dried milk, then you talk about white sauce. I don't believe in coincidences so here you go: I make something called "White Sauce Butter Balls: from the More Make a Mix cook book. A very easy way to make a starter for your white sauce ahead of time. You need:
ReplyDelete2 cups all purpose flour
2 Tblsp Salt
1/2 tsp ground white Pepper
2 cups butter - softened.
Line 2 baking sheets with waxed paper; set aside. In a sifter, combine flour, salt and white pepper. Sift into a large bow. Use a mixer or hand blender to cream butter into flour mixture until smooth. Drop by heping tablespoons onto prepared baking sheets (approx. 28 butter balls). Place in freezer until butter balls are frozen. Then place in freezer container and store up to six months. When you are ready to use, place 1 - 3 white sauce butter balls in a small sauce pan, heat over medium temp. Add 1 cup cold milk and heat until smooth and slightly thinkened. For a thin sauce, use one ball, for a thick sauce use three. For herbed sauce, add 1 Tbsp crushed dried parsley, and 1 1/2 tsp dried dill. For cheese sauce, add 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese. Add to soups to thicken and give a richer taste. The options are endless. There is another version of this same recipe that uses powered milk as well, both recipes are tried and true.
Cindy, I've read about doing this but have never tried it. Thanks for posting the recipe. I'm going to copy and paste it for future use. Keep the good ideas coming!
ReplyDelete