By now, we have all heard of the famous pasta dish, Fettuccini Alfredo, referred to as a “heart attack on a plate.” Well, perhaps it is with good reason that pasta dishes with heavy, sticky, white sauces have fallen out of favor. In fact, these days, unless it’s whole wheat pasta with vegetables, the super health conscious among us are filled with disdain. To which, I say, what a shame.
Béchamel sauce as it is known in France or Bechiamella as it is sometimes called in Italy is considered one of the “mother sauces” in both those cuisines. Not only does it figure into many classic dishes but it is a building block for other sauces as well.
In northern Italy, delicate cream sauces bathe tender pasta with mushrooms, ground boar or pork, and top luscious cannelloni, tubes filled with ground beef, cheese and tomato. Lasagna Bolognese is unlike the heavy cheese laden version we serve in America: Béchamel sauce stands in for the ricotta and mozzarella cheese while Bolognese sauce replaces the marinara or ragu. It is wonderful! Béchamel is baked with almost any vegetable you can think of for a fabulous “al forno.” And bowties with little cubes of ham and baby peas, topped with Parmesan, can be made any time of year, not just spring.
The origin of Béchamel is debated. One popular story is that the recipe migrated to France with the Italian-born Catherine de Medici sometime in the 14th century. Wherever it came from, Béchamel is not Alfredo sauce, which is heavy on butter and cream (maybe even cream cheese).
The key to making a great cream sauce is to use fresh ingredients and master the technique of making a “roux.” Do not overcook, and be patient until it thickens.
The Béchamel recipe that follows here is from “How to Cook Italian” by Giuliano Hazan. The ingredients are simple. The recipe can be cut in half or doubled. It is best made in a heavy saucepan.
Classic Béchamel Sauce
- Melt 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter in a saucepan over medium or medium-low heat.
- When melted, stir in 4 Tablespoons all-purpose flour. Whisk until the mixture is smooth. Cook for about 1 minute, whisking constantly but do not brown. (This is called making a roux) Remove the pan from the heat.
- Begin adding 2 cups whole milk, a little bit at first, and mix with a whisk. It will be very thick at first.
- Return to the heat and slowly add the whole milk, whisking all the while. You can add the milk more rapidly at the end.
- Season with a little salt to your taste and several dashes of nutmeg.
- Cook over medium heat until thickened, about 15 minutes.
You can refrigerate the sauce until you are ready to use it, but you may have to add a little more milk to thin it out.
Some important tips:
- Use real sweet cream butter.
- Use WHOLE milk.
- Buy a whisk if you don’t have one.
- Don’t omit the nutmeg. It adds such a unique taste,
Be adventurous with your little pot of Béchamel.
- Make some tortellini and drizzle some white sauce on top followed by some good marinara and grated cheese. The two sauces together are wonderful.
- Take a cup of Béchamel, stir in some marinara sauce until it becomes pink, add a ¼ cup of vodka, and some smoked salmon and toss with freshly cooked bow tie pasta.
- Drizzle some Béchamel over flounder or sole, sprinkle with paprika and bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
- Make real scalloped potatoes by layering thinly sliced potatoes in a gratin dish with sliced onion, salt, pepper and a little cubed butter.
- Try linguine with mushrooms, perhaps mixing together different kinds.
- Fettuccini with jumbo lump crap is heavenly. Maybe add some chopped herbs.
The possibilities are endless, so experiment. Just one thing: When you see those little packets of “Alfredo Sauce” at the grocery store, just keep walking.
