PENNE WITH BECHAMEL (WHITE SAUCE)

Pasta with Bechamel Sauce sounds hard to make but one of the easiest pasta dishes you can prepare and a delicious dinner your can serve your family. I thought of making this dish for Christmas eve because my daughter who is stationed in Italy sent me products from there and that includes of course pasta and cheese. Included from the package were Penne Rigate and freshly cut parmesan cheese that was vacuumed sealed to retain its freshness as it needs to travel from Italy to LA. Since I don't pasta recipes with Bechamel sauce yet so, might as well serve this one instead of spaghetti which is my traditional pasta every Christmas. 

For this recipe you can use any pasta you like. Same as well with the Pasta Sauce. Because I am Filipino, I grew up eating Filipino Sweet Spaghetti Sauce so I decided to use it and added a small amount of banana ketchup. Yes, banana sauce, also called banana ketchup is great with pasta recipes. If you haven't tried you should. 
For the Bechamel Sauce or white sauce, it only contains 4 ingredients namely butter, flour, milk and salt. Yes, that's it. Some adds cheese to it but it will be up to you. I like mine topped with parmesan cheese. Speaking of that, the parmesan cheese my daughter sent me is totally different from the one we use here in the US. This one is fresh, very moist and not salty. I just love it! 

​For visual hints, make sure to check out the video attached below or visit my YouTube Channel for all the recipes I have here. Click HERE. 

PASTA WITH BECHAMEL SAUCE RECIPE

Ingredients:

• 500 grams Penne Rigate or pasta of choice
• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 small red onion, chopped
• 4-5 cloves garlic, chopped
• 4 cups or 1 kg spaghetti or pasta sauce ( I used UFC Sweet Spaghetti Sauce)
• 1/2 cup banana sauce (banana catsup)
• 1 tbsp oregano
• 2 tbsp condensed milk (optional)
• salt and pepper to taste
• grated parmesan cheese for topping

White Sauce

• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 3 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp garlic salt or 1 tsp salt
• 2 cups fresh / whole milk

WATCH THIS VIDEO

Procedure:

• ​Boil and prepare pasta according to package instructions. Set aside. 
• In a large pan or wok, saute' garlic until fragrant. Add onion and cook until translucent. Add meat and cook until meat turns brown. Season with fish sauce or salt and pepper.
• Add pasta sauce, banana sauce, oregano and condensed milk. Occasionally stir and cook for about 10-15 minutes.  Add the cooked pasta and stir until well combined. Add cheese if desired. Remove from heat, cover and set aside.
• In a saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add flour. Stir until butter is absorbed and mixture is somewhat dry. Season with garlic salt and stir to combine. Add milk. Continue cooking until sauce becomes thick. 
• Transfer the pasta with sauce in a dish pan. I used a 13 x 9. Drizzle the Bechamel Sauce on top. Garnish with parmesan cheese or parsley if available. 
• Slice and serve. 

RECIPE NOTES:

• Here's how I prepare my pasta. Boil water with a small amount of salt and oil. After the recommended cooking time, rinse the pasta in cold water to stop the cooking process. It will stay firm and will avoid sticking together. 
• You can use any pasta you desire and omit the banana sauce and condensed milk on this recipe. The good thing about making pasta, it is so simple and you can adjust according to your liking. 
  
• You can also bake this recipe after adding the sauce but you don't have to. Bake at 350F for 5-10 minutes or warm it up in the microwave for few minutes. ​

RECOMMENDED RECIPES:

FILIPINO SPAGHETTI

CHICKEN ALFREDO

PRINTABLE RECIPE

Penne with Bechamel (White) Sauce by PinoyCookingRecipes