I used to make it often....its' a great sunday night supper.
Pretty well it's a medium white sauce with some milk and some beer, with lots of cheese melted in, seasoned with Coleman's mustard and worchestershire.
Ree Drummand makes it about the way I do....but I never put in the egg yolk and only used a tiny bitty pinch of cayenne.
Good stuff!!
Linda C

Here is a link that might be useful: Welsh rabbit

This was a recipe I started making in the early 1970's during the poor college student days! Not authentic, but inexpensive and filling ;-). -Grainlady

QUICK CURRIED WELSH RAREBIT

1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 c. whole or evaporated milk
1/2 pound diced sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 t. dry mustard
1 t. curry powder
1 t. Worcestershire sauce
4 slices toast

Heat soup and milk (in covered pan) over low heat until scalding hot. Add cheese and remaining ingredients, stir until smooth. Serve hot at once on toast. Garnish with tomato wedges, parsley or watercress.

Variations: Use cream of tomato soup. Add 1 c. diced poultry, tuna or other meat or vegetables.

For Yorkshire Welsh Rarebit: Poach an egg per serving, place on toast. Pour welsh rarebit over egg, top with slice of crisp bacon.

yum! Reminds me of a favorite dish--back in the day-- Rarebit Burgers. Welsh Rarebit sauce poured over and completely covering grilled burgers on the bun. Eaten with knife and fork. Only back then I used Stouffers frozen sauce.

I think that's going to be on the menu this weekend. Thanks for memory lane.

I just use a white sauce, bit of mustard and as many cheeses as I can find in the fridge--lots of extra sharp cheddar, of course, and possibly: blue, Parmesan, herbed or Sun-dried tomato cheddar, etc.

I like to serve it over toast topped with sliced tomato, then add a sprinkle of crumbled bacon.

Seems I remember a rarebit recipe where you mixed grated cheese with butter, flour, seasonings to form a sort of paste that could be kept chilled until needed. Then you spread it on toasted bread that was put under the broiler until hot and bubbly. Anyone else remember this?

I like rarebit that includes sliced tomatoes and crisp, cooked bacon. Then again, everything can be improved with a bit o' bacon.

Teresa

Shhh...don't tell DH anyone but Stouffer's makes it! He loves it over ham or turkey bacon on a toasted English muffin. I doctor it with Worcestershire and half hot paprika from Penzey's! One day when I'm feeling particularly generous, I'll have to surprise him and prepare it from scratch.

Yes, Teresa, that paste is more like the old traditional Welsh recipes. More a paste than a sauce and broiled. We used to make it pretty thick so it would broil nice. We did the bread like we did our cinnamon toast under the broiler. Just toast one side, then put cheese[or butter and cinnamon sugar] on other untoasted side and broil. I only bring up the cinnamon toast because that method of toasting one side them putting stuff on untoasted side and broiling is a real winner. That would be a nice Saturday night supper for us. We like quick and easy on Sat nights. Haven't made it in decades. Not sure I've ever made it for Christy and she loves cheddar. Thanks for bringing it up.

Here's an authentic recipe. It really needs cheddar and only cheddar!!!
Perfect Welsh rarebit
Ingredients

50g/2oz flour

50g/2oz butter

250ml/9oz strong beer, warmed

250g/9oz strong cheddar, grated

2tsp English mustard

2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

black pepper

4 large slices granary bread

Preparation method

In a small saucepan melt the butter and make a roux with the flour. Cook for a couple of minutes, stirring to prevent the roux from burning. Stir in the warm beer by degrees, until you have a thick but smooth sauce. Add the grated cheese and stir until melted. You should now have a thick paste. Mix in the mustard and Worcestershire sauce and season well with black pepper.

Lightly toast and butter the bread, then pile up the cheesy mixture on each slice. Cook under a hot grill for a few minutes, until browned and bubbling.

There really is no other way than what Islay posted but I don't find it as stiff as Islay said and I don't broil it......anything else is just cream sauce with added cheese. Real Welsh Rabbit is mostly cheese and if there is any left over it becomes very solid when cold.

and I have tried a method for making Welsh rabbit where you toss the melted cheese with the flour and add it to the warm beer in the pan and cook until the flour cooks....but that has broken for me....sometimes the cheese separates into curds and grease (ugh!) before the flour cooks. Safer to make a bechamil first then add your beer and cheese.

I also make something I call "beer cheese" and use it as a cracker spread or pile it on bread which was toasted on one side, and broil.
As I remember it's half pound of swiss, half pound of cheddar, both grated, a can or bottle of beer (12 oz) and some Coleman's mustard a bit of garlic powder and w'shire and/or Tobasco....let sit until the cheese absorbs the beer and it becomes thick sort of like peanut butter.
Keeps a long time

The VICTORY binding of the American Woman's COOK BOOK wartime edition edited by Ruth Berolzheimer and published 1944 has three recipes listed. I got the book from my Mother-in-law just before she passed. She had two pages marked with old pieces of paper, and one of them was the Welsh Rarebit on page 378.

p. 378 (listed in the "Cheese" section)
Welsh Rarebit
No.1
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon prepared mustard
1/2 pound sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1/2 cup ginger ale
1 egg, slightly beaten

Melt butter and add seasonings and cheese. Stir i double boiler until cheese is soft. Add ginger aile, then add egg. Cook until thick. Serve on toast or crackers. Serves 3.

No. 2
1 pound sharp cheese, grated
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1 teaspoon mustard
1 teaspoon cornstarch
3/4 cup milk
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Melt cheese with butter in double boiler. Mix mustard and cornstarch, moiten with milk and add with remaining ingredients except toast (sic). Cook until thickened. Serve on toast. Serves 4

p. 751 (listed in the "Wine Seasons Fine Food" section)
Welsh Rarebit
1 lb. grated American Cheese
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon butter
1/2 pint ale or beer
salt and prepared mustard to taste

Melt butter and stir so that it oils the bottom of your pan. (a chafing dish over water is ideal.) Add the cheese and gently stir into it one tablespoon of beer or ale. The cheese will at once thicken and another tablespoon of beer or ale should be added. Stir continuously. Add more liquid until the mixture is smooth and velvety. The exact amount of ale varies with different cheeses. Season to taste and serve on toast. Hot plates are essential. This will serve six single portions.

Thanks for all your replies.

One of our yacht clubs here on Lake Erie serves breadsticks with little ramekins of warm welsh rarebit. Everyone usually gets seconds. I've copied for company but have taken the easy way out and used Stouffers.

When times were tight and the kids were small, we just opened a can of Campbell's Cheddar Cheese Soup, put in half a can of milk, some Worcestershire sauce, some dry mustard, and heated it in a pot. We made fancy toast points and served it with sliced tomatoes. The kids thought it was so gourmet - eating rabbit for lunch!

Nancy