BellaVitano Champagne Sauce
Chef Erich Cheica, Sartori Corporate Chef
Yield: 32 ounces
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- ¼ cup sweet onion –(small dice)
- 1 tablespoon crushed garlic
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ cup Champagne (dry)
- 2 cups skim milk
- 1½ cups half & half
- Roux – as needed (see directions below)
- 1 cup BellaVitano cheese – shredded/shaved
- Sea salt & black pepper (to taste)
Directions
Cooking Directions
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Melt butter in a medium size saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, garlic and bay leaf. Cook on medium heat until onion lightly starts to brown.
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Deglaze pan with Champagne and reduce amount to ¼ cup.
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Add milk and half & half. Bring just to a simmer and thicken with Roux as you stir with a fine wire whisk. Add Roux slowly, one tablespoon at a time. Sauce should be thick enough to coat the back of a teaspoon but not so thick that it looks like paste.
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Slowly whisk in BellaVitano cheese until thoroughly combined.
Roux:
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In a saucepan melt ¼ pound of unsalted butter and stir in ¼ pound of all-purpose flour until there are no lumps. Hold until ready to use. May be stored in refrigerator for up to two months.
Final Preparation
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Taste and adjust seasoning as needed with sea salt & pepper. Serve over pasta or as a sauce with chicken, shrimp or scallops.