Bechamel Sauce (#2)
This is béchamel sauce includes a bit of yellow onion and is the base for Maria’s Wild Mushroom and Comté Cheese Tart Flambé. Yield: 2¾ cups
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons (¼ stick) unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2½ cups whole milk
- ¼ small yellow onion, peeled
- 1 small bay leaf, dried or fresh
- Salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
Directions
1. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan. Stir in the flour with a wooden spoon until the butter and the flour are thoroughly combined. Continue to cook the mixture over medium heat for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove the pan from the heat.
2. Whisk in the milk 1 cup at a time. Whisk until the paste is smooth then add another cup of milk and repeat the process until the milk is finished. The milk and flour should be smooth and slightly thickened.
3. Place the pan back over medium heat and add the onion and the bay leaf. Bring the sauce to a boil while whisking constantly. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 15 minutes stirring every 5 minutes with a wooden spoon. The sauce will form a crust on the bottom so try not to disturb it with the wooden spoon or you will have brown flecks in your sauce. To avoid this, you can transfer the sauce to a double boiler and continue to cook it for 20 minutes without having to stir.
4. Strain the sauce into a large bowl and season with salt and pepper. Reserve at room temp for use within a couple of hours or refrigerate covered for later use.