Easy bread sauce

Every Christmas dinner or Thanksgiving meal should have a bowl of classic, rich bread sauce, so why not try making Chef Andrew's easy bread sauce recipe this year. We love that the veg is grated for ease and that it can be made a few weeks in advance and frozen until needed, meaning less stress on the day itself.

Serves 4-6

Serves 4-6

Vegetarian

Vegetarian

Ingredients

  • 500ml whole milk
  • 1 small onion, peeled and grated
  • 1 small carrot, peeled and grated (optional)
  • 4 cloves
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 125g stale white bread, crusts removed and blitzed into breadcrumbs
  • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 30g unsalted butter
  • 30ml double cream
  • Nutmeg, for grating

Cooking instructions

  • Place the milk, onion, carrot (this adds a lovely colour and sweetness but you can leave out if you prefer), cloves and bay leaf in a medium saucepan and bring to the boil. Take off the heat and leave to infuse for 1 hour.
  • Strain the milk through a sieve into a clean saucepan and use a spoon to press every last drop through.
  • Add the breadcrumbs and place back on a medium heat. Bring to a simmer and stir until thickened. Remove from the heat, season with salt and pepper then stir through the butter and cream.
  • Finely grate a good dusting of nutmeg over the top to serve.

Make-ahead

If making ahead, cool completely and transfer to a freezer-proof container. Seal and freeze for up to 1 month. Defrost fully before reheating in a pan until piping hot to serve.

Serving suggestion

To make this look extra festive, add half an onion studded with cloves as you reheat the bread sauce and serve with bay leaves to garnish.