Dee Dee wrote:
>
>
>
> The first thing we were taught in Home-Ec in 1949 was how to make
> bechamel. I tried and failed until in the last year or so. I now use
> Mario Batali's recipe in one of his books. I notice that there is the
> same recipe online at
>
> http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/reci...ml?rsrc=search
>
> This is the EXACT recipe I use, except the book differs in one
> instance. The book recipe uses 3 cups of milk, and foodnetwork
> receipe uses 4 cups of milk. I use the 3 cups of milk.

I haven't bothered following a recipe for it for a long time. I figure it
is more about the procedure than the exact amount of ingredients. I start
with a little more butter than flour, as that recipe suggest (5 butter, 4
flour), melt the butter, add the flour, but the amount depends on how much
sauce I intend to make. I stir it around and let it cook a bit, then take
it off the heat and add milk and stir it with a whisk to make sure it is
thoroughly mixed and smooth, then put it back on the heat... stirring
constantly. I haven't had a failure since I learned the importance of
constant stirring.