Cheese Sauce (Gluten Free)

Basic cheese sauce for baked macaroni and cheese, baked potatoes au gratin, or for any vegetable au gratin.  There are many such recipes; I like this one because it is easy to learn and to remember: 2+2+2+2+seasonings.  That's it!

Cheese Sauce

2 Tb. butter
2 Tb. flour
2 Cups milk
2 Cups grated cheese

We are using rice flour, as we are cooking for someone who has gluten intolerance.  Otherwise, ordinary wheat flour is fine.

Melt butter in a pan. Stir in the flour, and continue stirring until the mixture is hot and bubbling throughout.  Slowly add milk, stirring so that lumps do not form, and continue heating and stirring until the sauce is thickened.  Lower heat and stir in 2 cups of grated cheese, stirring so that it melts and becomes smooth.

It's an easy sauce, and possible variations and additions are many.  Use things up: buttermilk, canned milk, even plain yogurt.  Any sort of cheese that needs using up, grated.  Flavor with parsley, pepper, paprika, cayenne, or any spice that goes well with the other ingredients in the meal.

To see a full set of photographs showing how this dish was made, go to this set on flickr.   (It will open in a new tab or window; to return to this page, just close it.) The small pictures are thumbnails; click on each one to see it full-size, and to read the comments under it.  If you prefer to use the slideshow feature, you won't see the captions unless you click on "show info" (top right).