Since I didn't see anyone mention this here, I figure I ought to:
If you like the texture of melted Velveeta (and, let's be real, who doesn't), get on Amazon and by a bag of food-grade Sodium Citrate.
Here's a link. it seems expensive, but one bag will last you for a very long time.
This stuff is the chemical compound in stuff like Velveeta and Kraft slices thq t makes it melt so well. Mix about 14 grams (about 3 teaspoons) of the stuff to half a bottle of beer, bring to a boil, mix in about a pound of any freshly shredded cheese, and then blend with an emulsion blender.
Bam, perfect cheese sauce.
The last time I did this, I did exactly what I said above, and added 1 pound of taco spiced beef and a can of Rotel, and it vanished quickly.
Let me be clear: I have no problems with Velveeta, it's great. That said, this stuff allows you to get Velveeta like melt out of ANY cheese you want, or any mixture of cheeses, and that's awesome.
Science tip. If you want to emulsify (combining oil and water) anything without eggs, I suggest buying sodium citrate. Think Mayo, it is oil and an acid that is emulsified using eggs. A “creamy” sauce is usually made using an emulsion so this can help create dairy free creamy sauces.
PS my mom’s favorite gulten free pasta is Tinkyáda brand
<strong>'sup mofos, y'all ready?!</strong>
one of my all-time fave snacks pre-keto used to be a warm Auntie Anne's pretzel from the stand at the mall. this recipe is a surprisingly truthful approximation of the taste/texture (minus the grease) and definitely achieves that crisp but flexible bread-y texture that we all crave from a quality pretzel.
i call my dipping sauce "bowling alley cheese" because it reminds me of that particular variety of neon-orange nacho cheese that is traditionally served at your finer bowling establishments. ;)
these pretzels are pretty yummy on their own but dipping them into the cheese really catapults them from good to great. they're also quite simple to make and they'll be an easy sell to kids & non-keto'ers.
ingredients:
pretzels:
"bowling alley" cheese sauce:
directions:
cheese sauce:
<strong>((macros))</strong> > makes 4 servings of pretzels & sauce.
> (PS: this cheese dough is mild enough in flavor that you can modify it and do a sweet version too; just skip the cheese sauce & Italian herbs, season pretzels with cinnamon & butter, then melt down some dark/keto-friendly chocolate for dippies.)
A roux based sauce is not the best way to go, although it can be ok with more milk to thin it out and really sharp cheddar to keep the flavor focused, but sodium citrate is the way to the sauce you are describing. It is cheap, easy to source and stable for bloody ever.
Once you try a little sodium citrate in your cheese sauce, you’ll never go back to doing it the hard way. The stuff is magic.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BLPNMYY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_jRDyFbAXJBPGJ
You can buy Food Grade Sodium Citrate on Amazon as well, it gets a bit easier to control the flavor and how much goes in this way.
You can make your own liquidy cheese stuff very easily with sodium citrate (https://www.amazon.com/Citrate-Gluten-Free-Certified-Molecular-Gastronomy/dp/B00BLPNMYY), the cheese of your choice and water (or beer or pretty much any other liquid). Here's 1 recipe: https://twoguysandacooler.com/making-an-incredibly-simple-nacho-cheddar-sauce/. It literally takes about 5 minutes and you can use whatever cheese or combination of cheeses you like as long as it's not of the pre-shredded variety. I make my mac and cheese this way.
I know it's probably not want you want to hear but adding some processed cheese like Velveeta will have the same effect.
Sodium citrate $13 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BLPNMYY/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_i_1DYVP77SRG3YBGQN1FAR
this! https://modernistcuisine.com/recipes/melty-queso-dip/
literally water (or beer), shredded cheese and the main ingredient ....
sodium citrate! costs ~ $10 for a huge bag (you use only like 1/2t for a huge batch of cheese sauce) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BLPNMYY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glc_fabc_SgR3FbR55ZBAF
couldn’t be easier - warm the liquid, mix in the tiny amount of citrate - throw the cheese in and whisk. makes the smoothest most beautiful cheese sauce you’ve ever had.
have made tons of bechamel based sauces over the years but after discovering this method, won’t be going back
so good i may have had this for lunch with tortilla chips a couple of times this week 🙄😂
Get yourself some sodium citrate to make cheese sauce for nachos or even mac and cheese. It is a game changer and so easy.
Here's the ingredients:
> Whey, Milk, Canola Oil, Maltodextrin, Milk Protein Concentrate, Sodium Phosphate, Contains Less Than 2% Of Whey Protein Concentrate, Modified Food Starch, Salt, Lactic Acid, Mustard Flour, Sodium Alginate, Worcestershire Sauce (Vinegar, Molasses, Corn Syrup, Water, Salt, Caramel Color, Garlic Powder, Sugar, Spices [Contains Celery], Tamarind, Natural Flavor), Sorbic Acid As A Preservative, Milkfat, Cheese Culture, Annatto And Oleoresin Paprika (Color), Natural Flavor, Enzymes.
The key to processed cheese consistency is emulsifiers like sodium citrate or sodium phosphate. It's pretty easy to find recipes online that use sodium citrate to make a cheese sauce, like this or this. Sodium citrate itself is available on Amazon (not an affiliate link, but that's the product I've used). Now, you'll notice that the Cheese Whiz ingredients include extra flavoring agents, namely mustard powder and Worcestershire sauce, so add a bit of those to taste when you follow another recipe.
honestly, I just make mac n cheese with sodium citrate instead of the traditional bechamel. it's only 4 ingredients (mac, milk, cheese, sodium citrate). boil mac.
sodium citrate can be found on amazon
recipe for mac n cheese w/sodium citrate
I kid you not, everyone gets impressed at every potluck i've done this for. and it's really simple. cheers!
I use this brand, which I got at Amazon, but if you search for sodium citrate at Amazon there's lots of other brands. I bought it about a year ago and still have some left.
Here's Modernist Cuisine's melty queso dip, using sodium citrate, and here's their macaroni and cheese. I've made the mac and cheese before using cauliflower as a substitute for noodles, it's pretty good!
Every year, Kenji, the lead blogger at Serious Eats (and former editor of Cooks Illustrated and recent author of a best-selling cookbook), does a month of blogging about vegan fare each year.
You might want to read Top 10 Tips For a First-Time Vegan, How to Grill or Broil Tofu That's Really Worth Eating, and How to Stock a Vegan Pantry, but everything in the Vegan Experience is worth reading.
Eggs are a great source of protein. Quiche is relatively easy to make (if not exactly healthy with the heavy cream), and is a great way to use up odds and ends. Shakshouka is also great.
Modernist macaroni and cheese is pretty easy if you can get someone to order the sodium citrate online for you, and the results are really good. You don't need the immersion blender - I always just use a whisk or spoon and it turns out fine, and often just eye-ball the amount of the ingredients.
How to cook everything vegetarian is also a pretty good cook book, and might be worth picking up.
Sodium citrate is an emulsifier. I got mine at Amazon.com.
An emulsifier is a agent that can bond two different substances that normally wouldn't bond like oil and water. In this case it bonds cheese and water. People often think it help things melt. That isn't really accurate. In this case it turn cheese and water (or beer or cider or white wine) into a cheese sauce by bonding cheese and water molecules together. Eggs are another emulsifier.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2JSiyolnwo
Also if you can find the episode of Good Eats (Episode: EA1D10) Mayo Clinic, Alton Brown explains it really well.
It's not going to be the actual recipe, but I'd try to use the modernist mac and cheese recipe as a starting place, because it's so simple and easy.
Basically, sodium citrate is an amazing emulsifier of cheese. Commercial American cheeses typically use sodium phosphate, which is essentially equivalent. You can basically just combine water/milk/beer, sodium citrate, and cheese, and end up with high quality homemade velveeta in 5-10 minutes. You can easily scale up the recipe; it's 100 parts cheese, 93 parts liquid, and 4 parts sodium citrate.
12 oz Allagash White 13 oz Cheddar .5 oz Sodium Citrate allspice + cayenne to taste
Shred cheddar.
Put beer in saucepan on medium heat.
Add sodium citrate.
Add cheese, stirring until it dissolves into the sauce.
Season with salt, allspice and cayenne to taste.