My parents were lucky in that my brothers and I didn’t need too much convincing to eat our vegetables when we were growing up. Well besides, say it with me, bell peppers and cooked carrots. Oh, and lima beans. If I never see a bag of frozen succotash again, it’ll be too soon.
That said, even I — a die-hard veggie lover — can appreciate a little jazzing up of my favorite side dish every now and again with a warm, decadent Easy Cheddar Cheese Sauce drizzled on top, muwahaha!
This cheddar cheese sauce takes just 5 minutes to make and will liven up everything from steamed broccoli and cauliflower, to hot baked potatoes. In addition to vegetables it’s also great to stir into pasta and rice, or even pour directly over crunchy tortilla chips for a little homemade nacho action.
The recipe is adapted from the cheddar cheese sauce I made to swirl into my Cheesy Taco Soup, except it has just a tad more shredded cheddar to really pump up the flavor.
The result is sensational! Thick and extra-cheesy – perfect for convincing any veggie hater to eat their greens or, for those who don’t really need an extra push, a special, occasional treat.
How to Make Easy Cheddar Cheese Sauce
Start by melting butter in a saucepan over medium heat, then whisk in gluten-free or all-purpose flour and cook for 1 minute.
Next, slowly whisk in milk, season with salt and pepper, then switch to a wooden spoon and stir until the mixture has thickened, about 3-4 minutes.
Turn off the heat then add freshly shredded cheddar cheese and stir until smooth. Taste then add additional salt and pepper if desired.
That’s all she wrote! Liberally drizzle the cheese sauce over your favorite cooked vegetables then devour. I hope you love this decadent, delicious dish – enjoy!
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Easy Cheddar Cheese Sauce
Description
Liven up broccoli to baked potatoes with 5-minute Easy Cheddar Cheese Sauce for Vegetables!
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons butter
- 2 Tablespoons gluten-free or all-purpose flour
- salt and pepper
- 1 cup milk (works best with 2% milk)
- 1-1/2 cups freshly shredded cheddar cheese (not pre-grated)
Directions
- Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add flour then whisk for one minute. Slowly whisk in milk then season with salt and pepper and switch to a wooden spoon. Stir and cook until thickened, 4-5 minutes, then turn off heat and add cheese. Stir until sauce is melted and smooth then taste and add additional salt and pepper if necessary. Serve immediately.
This recipe is courtesy of Iowa Girl Eats, http://iowagirleats.com.
LOVE this! It was totally the only way I would eat broccoli as a kid, although that was cheese sauce from a jar ;-) I’m definitely making this!
This looks like a perfect addition to broccoli (or any other veggie!! YUM!
Broccoli with cheese sauce is one of my most favorite things!! Yay to no more cheez whiz!! Totally trying this :)
That is a great basic cheese sauce that every new cook needs to add to his/her recipe box. That makes so much sense about the coating on the cheese. Duh!
I pin just about everything you post. You’ve made my life/meal-planning so much easier with your recipes. Keep up the good work! My tummy (and my husband’s) is so thankful.
Brocolli trunks are my favourite bit!
I did not know that about coated per shredded cheese, good to know and this is yummy looking!!
cheese sauce or not, the broccoli stalks are my *favourite* parts – the little tree bits are definitely second rate!
This looks yummy! I wonder if I can use Veggie Shreds instead of real cheese… my son has a dairy allergy, so that’s what I use for him when anything calls for cheese. He’s always saying he wishes he could have nachos! :)
My mom used to make green beans with a certain processed cheese when us kids were growing up. Although I’d never buy a block of that stuff for myself, I could certainly get a little nostalgic by making this not-so-naughty version :)
I almost never have cow milk on hand! I always have almond or soy milk, however. Can i use it for this recipe? I was just thinking that I needed a way to jazz up my veggies and would love to try this!
Can almond milk be substituted?
I haven’t tried, so I can’t vouch for the consistency, but I think it would work!
Is is the cow part that’s a problem? I’ve made cheese sauce with evaporated milk before and it’s delicious. Of course, it’s still cow, so, that may not be helpful for you.
Cheese sauce makes everything better but I can definitely go to town on some steamed broccoli. Yours looks perfect!
Perfect! I had to sit myself down for a come to Jesus talk today because I’ve been slacking off on the whole lose weight before summer thing. We decided that I needed to eat more veggies. This will definitely make that easier.
No kids, but my husband still asks for cheese on his broccoli! I think I will try freezing some of this sauce to have on hand.
Yum!
What don’t you like about bell peppers? I’m not a fan of raw carrots but cooked are okay.
I’ve always made cheese sauce with Velveeta but will try this recipe in an attempt to get the kids to eat broccoli. Thanks for the info about the shredded cheese. Didn’t know about that coating but makes sense. Did you use a mild or sharp cheddar?
Looks decadent!
That’s how I make the cheese sauce for my personal serving of mac & cheese… right down to the switch from whisk to wooden spoon. It’s soooooo good. (Add roasted broccoli to eat with & I’m happy!)
does that make me odd that i love lima beans, lentils,bell pepper, cooked carrot and pretty much any veggie and ALWAYS have? hmmmm? cheese looks yummy
NO…I love all veggies also.
Everything is better with cheese! Especially broccoli. And Friski…such a a cute name. I wish they could out-live us!