Cheese Sauce (Nik's)

By LadyJ1114

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp. butter or butter substitute
• 2 tbsp. of flour of some sort
• 1.5 c. cold milk
• 1.5 c. + 1/3 c. shredded white cheddar cheese
• 1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
• Any spices you like: garlic powder, a dash of salt, fresh ground black pepper and a "splick" of cayenne

Preparation

Step 1

Set a small pot over medium heat and let it get hot (about 3-ish mintues). Add butter and melt.

Add flour and stir until flour has absorbed the butter. It will look kind of like Play-Doh.

(This next part is tricky so if you have a better way, use it!)

With one hand, pour the milk into the pot. Be sure it is COLD! With the other hand, whisk the flour/butter mixture in. There may still be some flour bits floating around. Theoretically this shouldn't happen if the milk is cold and the flour/butter combo is hot but if it does you can fish them out with a slotted spoon.

Let this mixture come to a simmer, then add your white cheddar cheese (the 1.5 cups), Parmesan cheese and seasonings. Stir with a long wooden spoon until it thickens, usually about 2-3 minutes. If you're ready to mix it with your cauliflower (or chosen "thing"), do so. If not, keep the sauce going on low until you're ready to use it.

Now let's get back to that cauliflower.

At this point your water should be boiling. If you use frozen cauliflower, dump it in there and let the whole thing return to a boil. It cooks pretty fast (about 5 minutes or so). If you're using fresh add that and cook until very tender (about 7-8 minutes) for fresh.




Once your cauliflower is cooked, drain it and then mash it by whatever means you have available (I use a potato masher).




Mix the cheese sauce into the cauliflower in the pot and then empty it into a casserole dish (I used an 8 x 8 Pyrex dish). Sprinkle the remaining 1/3 cup of cheese on top and add any other spices you like to the top (I usually do salt, pepper and a sprinkle of Herbs de Provence) and bake it for 30 minutes or until it is bubbling and the top is slightly browned.