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Grandma Ruth's White Foundation Sauce

     Nobody ever told me about Grandma Ruth's White Foundation Sauce. But,

everyone knew about it! I first learned about this recipe for creamy sauces in the April

2000 Backpacker's magazine ("Hit The Sauce," by Buck Tilton). Since then, I've used it as the foundation for making a creamy macaroni and cheese "from scratch," crab meat Alfredo over tortellini, etc.

     Now, I'm telling you. Grandma Ruth's White Foundation Sauce is the basic sauce for all creamy sauces. I'll give you the recipe for a balanced, medium thickness sauce. To make it thinner (or thicker), subtract (or add) 1-tablespoon of margarine and flour.

Here are some tips before you pack:

• Pack your margarine in a plastic tube and store it in a Zip-lock bag to prevent any possible leakage into your pack.
  

• In a separate sandwich sized Zip-lock bag, pour in the required water for this recipe. With  a permanent marker, mark the water-line. When you're at camp, simply refill the  bag with water to the water-line, add your powdered milk and shake!
  

• Bring a non-stick, MSR frying pan. Cooking and cleaning sauce pans will be a snap!
  

• Test your camp stove to determine if you can get a low enough flame for sautéing butter, etc.
  

Grandma Ruth's White Foundation Sauce (Medium Thickness)

                      Ingredients:

                                               Powdered Milk     4 Tablespoons

                                               Cold Water           1 Cup

                                               Margarine             2- Tablespoons

                                               Flour                     2- Tablespoons

     This sauce cooks relatively fast. It does require a little skill. So, practice at home. (Once should be sufficient!)

     Mix the water and powdered milk together in your Zip-lock bag. Put aside. In your non-stick pan, slowly melt the butter over a low heat. Slowly stir in the flour until you have a smooth paste. Finally, slowly pour in the milk and slowly stir until you have a creamy sauce. In about 5 minutes you're ready to serve Grandma Ruth's White Foundation Sauce with some condiments over pasta or rice. Of course, you can modify it a zillion ways.

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Chef DeBoot

Blister's Gourmet Corner of the Woods

Editor's note: The picture of Grandma Ruth is temporarily on loan to G-WeBconnect from the GR Archives in Phoenix, AZ.. It is hoped that a slightly more contemporary, digital picture can be secured in the near future.