Big Batch No-Cheese Sauce

So I can safely say that I like to cook more than the average person.  I am always in the kitchen inventing, cooking, and making something delicious.  However, even with all that enthusiasm, I still have a really hard time remembering that dinner comes every night, and that my family wants to eat every night. After more than 20 years of cooking for my family you would think I would have mastered this pattern of breakfast, lunch, dinner, repeat.  Sometimes I have a good kitchen day and we have homemade everything (and lots of dishes).  Sometimes I am sidetracked by another fun adventure like visiting with friends or having a day working in the garden.  On those days, I forget about dinner until the kids start asking where it is.  They are pretty resourceful in the kitchen (lots of dishes on those days too!),  but its nice to be able to have some quick dinner options.

This recipe is the base for lots of those quick meals.  It goes great in creamy soups like Creamy Broccoli Soup, or over noodles for Mac-no-Cheese.  I like it fresh, but unlike a regular cheese sauce, it also freezes really well.  On a good cooking day, I'll make a big pot like this and then vacuum seal it in quart-sized freezer bags. When I want a quick noodle meal I just put the frozen freezer bag in hot water to thaw, or heat it up on the stove.  For my crock-pot potato soup, I just dice up potatoes and carrots and a celery stalk or two, add water to cover, a little vegetable base and garlic powder and let it cook all day.  When I come home I just add a package of the frozen no-cheese sauce to the crock-pot and it thaws while I'm getting everything else done.  A half hour later the soup is done.  If you forget to start it in the morning, it also works really well in an Instant Pot too.  

Big Batch No-Cheese Sauce