Fondue Party!

We had some friends over our house for New Year's Eve and I made cheese fondue. It was yummy, but very rich and fatty. I don't need to eat fondue again for a very long time. Here's the basic recipe for classic Swiss fondue:

• 4 cups shredded Gruyere cheese


• 4 cups shredded Emmentaler cheese


• 1 Tbsp flour


• 1 clove garlic


• 1 1/4 cup dry white wine (I used a Sauvignon Blanc)


• 2-4 Tbsp Kirsch (cherry brandy)


• ground black pepper


• pinch of nutmeg


• 1 large loaf of crusty French bread, cut into cubes

Toss the shredded cheese with the flour. Cut the garlic clove in half and rub cut side along the inside of a sauce pan. Pour in wine and bring to just a boil. Gradually add cheese to simmering wine, stirring constantly with a wisk. Allow each batch of cheese to melt before adding the next batch. (Note - This is a very slow process and I recommend drinking some of the remaining wine while you stand at the stove.) Once all of the cheese has been added and melted, stir in the Kirsch. Be careful if you have a gas range because the Kirsch is 90 proof and you don't want a fireball in your face. Stir in pepper and nutmeg.

Pour mixture into a heated ceramic fondue pot and place over a flame. Serve with bread chunks and cut up veggies if you are feeling healthy. But don't fool yourself -- a couple broccoli florets won't reverse the amount of fat and colesterol you are consuming.

Some final thoughts on fondue:

1. Wash the pot you made the fondue in right away. The cheese will stick like the dickens and it won't smell pretty the next day (all that alcohol)


2. If you have any cheese leftover, you can reheat it in the microwave. Stir it often and pour off the excess oil. Try not to think about all that oil in your body either.