Say Cheese

I was glad to see fondue make a comeback a couple of years ago. I grew up in the 60s eating it regularly and, like all things cheesy, I love it. Nor did I quit eating it just because it became less popular. But I had a nice old ceramic pot that I broke a few years back and I had trouble finding a replacement for it so I’d been making do with an enameled cast iron sauce pan. It worked but it was too big and heavy to fit comfortably on the heating stand. I was happy to replace it with a new Emile Henri ceramic pot. (I couldn’t find the pot I have at Amazon, but this one is quite similar.)

At any rate, a friend of mine got a fondue pot (one of those heavy Le Crueset jobs) for Christmas and asked me for a recipe.

Real fondue — as I learned it — is a mixture of Gruyere and Emmentaler. It’s not a quick dish (or easy as it requires attention throughout), but it is deeply satisfying. A trick I learned from a Swiss friend is that instead of adding Kirsh to the cheese mixture, serve it separately in a small bowl (the Swiss have bowls for just this purpose, you can see one to the left of the plate in the photo above). Briefly dip the bread in the Kirsch and then swirl it around in the cheese. This approach will knock your head off — not recommended for children — but definitely meets the goal of food that hurts.

I’ve also borrowed from the traditions of the Swiss dish of Raclette when serving fondue. I like to accompany it with a collection of pickles, olives, and cold meats. A green salad is also a good side dish, but I like having an excuse to eat lots of pickles and olives, which are among my favorite foods. And as with raclette, they offer a nice foil to the richness of the cheese.

Fondue

1 lb gruyere — shredded
1 lb emmentaler — shredded
2 c white wine (I recommend something rather sharp and flinty)
4 tbsp flour
1 lg garlic clove — partially crushed
1 tsp white pepper
1 tsp ground mustard powder
1 baguette
Kirshwasser

Thoroughly mix cheeses and flour.

Rub garlic clove over inside of pot and discard. Add wine and set over low heat until bubbles begin to rise. (Note: this cannot be hurried or cheese will separate!) Gradually add cheese by the handful, stirring after each addition until cheese is melted and you have a smooth, homogenous mixture. Add pepper and mustard.

There are two schools of thought on the bread, some like to cut it into cubes and then lightly toast it while others like to heat the bread and then cube it. I tend to swing toward cubed and lightly toasted because the toasted bread absorbs a bit less kirsch when dipped and I like the crunch.

Place the bread in a napkin-lined basket. Pour a small measure of kirsch into small cups — expresso cups work well.

Dip the bread lightly into kirsch and then swirl in cheese. Serves 4.

Technorati: Food | recipe | main dish | cheese

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