LEMON BECHAMEL SAUCE RECIPES

Steps:

• Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Once melted, stir in the flour until smooth. Continue stirring as the flour cooks to a light, golden, sandy color, about 7 minutes.
• Increase heat to medium-high and slowly whisk in milk until thickened by the roux. Bring to a gentle simmer, then reduce heat to medium-low and continue simmering until the flour has softened and not longer tastes gritty, 10 to 20 minutes, then season with salt and nutmeg.

Steps:

• If you're using fresh artichokes, fill a large bowl with cool water and squeeze the juice of 1/2 lemon into it. Reserve both lemon halves. Peel away any hard green leaves from each artichoke and slice off the top of each stem. Cut away the yellow leaves as close to the base as possible, then skin the base and the stem, removing the tough, green outside layer. Remove the fuzzy "choke" (center part) with the tip of a knife and throw away it. Cut each artichoke in half and rub the squeezed lemon half over all surfaces, then drop the artichokes into the bowl of water. When all the artichokes are trimmed, drain and rinse them; then place them in a pan with sufficient water to cover. Simmer, covered, over medium heat till tender, about 12 min. Drain and set aside. If you're using canned artichoke hearts, drain and set aside. Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water till al dente. Meanwhile, dice the artichokes and combine with the diced mozzarella. Add in salt. Peel the rind from the uncut lemon, being careful to keep it in one or possibly two large pcs; set aside. Juice this lemon and the remaining 1/2 lemon; set aside the juice. When the artichoke mix and pasta are ready, pour the lowfat milk into a small pot and add in the lemon rind. Heat till the lowfat milk begins to bubble; then remove the lemon rind and remove the pot from the heat. In a separate pan, heat the butter or possibly margarine over low heat and whisk in the flour, 1 tsp. at a time, stirring constantly. When all the flour has been added, continue to cook and stir constantly for 2 min. Remove from the heat and slowly add in warm lowfat milk, stirring constantly. Add in the reserved lemon juice. Over low heat, cook and stir till the sauce thickens slightly, about 2 min. Preheat the oven to 400F. Spread a little sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13" baking pan. If you're using fresh pasta, roll each rectangle around a portion of the artichoke mix and place the cannelloni in the baking pan; if you're using uncooked cannelloni, prepare the pasta according to the package directions; drain and let cold. Stuff each piece with the artichoke mix and place in the pan. Spread the remaining sauce over the top. Cover the pan with foil and bake 15 min. NOTES : I made this for my somewhat-vegetarian son and I, but I made a few changes. I didn't use the Lemon Bechamel Sauce, but used one of the lower fat Ragu sauces; and I used store-bought Manicotti shells instead of Cannelloni shells. I also added some fat free Ricotta cheese to the artichoke/mozzarella mix. We thought it was tasty and I think I'll make it again next week!