From the Melting Pot to Your Home

This recipe comes straight from the Meting Pot’s executive chef Shane Schaibly.

Who says you have to travel all the way to Switzerland to enjoy a traditional Swiss fondue? Well, this is the real deal that is so simple you can make it at home and impress your friends and family. I mean a fondue party is always fun and filling.

Next time you have a hankering for cheesy goodness, give this home fondue a try. So next time you are out and about and see a fondue set for sale — go ahead and pick it up — you now have a fabulous recipe to put in it.

Here is what you will need:

1 cup White Wine 2 tsp Garlic, chopped fine 2 tbsp Lemon juice, fresh squeezed ½ tsp Fresh ground black pepper 14 oz (3 ½ – 4 cups) 50% Swiss cheese/50% Emmanthaler cheese blend 1 oz Kirschwasser (Cherry flavored liqueur) Dash of Ground Nutmeg 2 tsp Cornstarch

Let’s get prepping:

Cheese should be shredded and tossed with cornstarch to aid in thickening and improve the viscosity of the fondue. The cheese should be the consistency of warm honey when complete. Monitor you cheese as it is being added and note that not all cheese may be needed and in some cases a bit more may be needed to get it to the perfect consistency.

You should be able to locate both of these cheeses through a specialty cheese shop or local upscale market.

Let’s get cooking:

Turn heat source to HIGH, place pot with 1” water on burner. Place liner into pot. When steam is visible, reduce heat to MED. Add wine to liner, while stirring with a fork; add garlic and lemon juice to liquid. Stir for approximately 30 seconds.

Add ½ of cheese and stir until fully incorporated into liquid. Then add pinches of the cheese in very small increments until the rest of the cheese is used and stir using a circular whipping motion until smooth.
Slowly pour in Kirschwasser around the perimeter of the cheese.

Turn fork over and use tines to pull cheese away from liner allowing Kirsch to have contact with the liner and alcohol to cook off. Fold in Kirsch for approximately 1 – 1 ½ minutes. Add black pepper and fold in gently, remove fork and garnish with a dash of nutmeg.

Traditional dippers for cheese fondue are cubed pieces of your favorite bread, diced apples, pears, carrots, celery, cauliflower, and broccoli, but don’t let that hold you back! Be creative and set out as many unique dippers as possible.

Serves 4-6 people.