Dinner Jan 1, 2025
Note: I found Raclette cheese this year! So I swapped that for the (unfound) appenzeller.
Fondue Ingredients:
3.5oz Gruyere Cheese, grated
3.5oz Swiss Cheese, grated
3.5oz Raclette Cheese, grated
1 tablespoon Flour (or cornstarch)
1 teaspoon paprika Freshly Ground Black Pepper
1 Garlic Clove 1 cup Verdejo Wine (dry white, like Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Grigio)
½ shot Plum Brandy
Dipping Ingredients:
1 crown Broccoli
1 crown Cauliflower
1 package Button Mushrooms
1 package Fingerling Potatoes
1 Honey Crisp Apple
1 Asian Pear
Pickled Brussels Sprouts
Vegetable Oil
Salt
Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Dipping Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C)
Trim florets from broccoli and cauliflower, leave a good amount of stem on to make staying on the fondue fork easier
Cut larger potatoes into bite size pieces
Rinse broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, potatoes, apple, and pear
Toss the broccoli, cauliflower, and potatoes in vegetable oil, salt, and pepper
Line a sheet pan with aluminum foil, grease, and add broccoli, cauliflower, and potatoes to the tray
Roast for 15 - 20 minutes
Toss the mushrooms with salt and pepper
Add mushrooms to the tray and continue to cook for about another 15 - 20 minutes, until the broccoli and cauliflower have slightly charred
Cut the apple and pear into bit sized pieces and the pickled Brussels sprouts in half
Fondue Directions:
For best results, you should probably follow your fondue pot's cooking directions. These are the cooking directions for my fairly standard issue pot.
In a large bowl, toss to combine cheeses, flour, paprika, and black pepper together to coat the cheese
Cut the garlic clove in half and rub the cut sides on the bottom and lower half of the fondue pot
[This is to get a garlic flavor and a smooth fondue, so no little chunks. I just used my garlic press to add the whole clove. We like garliciness more than we care about the texture of the fondue.]
Add the wine to the fondue pot
Turn the pot on to temperature setting 5 and bring the wine to a strong simmer, bubbling but not boiling
While stirring constantly, gradually whisk in the cheese a handful at a time, not adding more cheese until each handful is completely melted and smooth
When all the cheese has been added, stir in the plum brandy
Reduce the pot's temperature setting to 3, the fondue should continue to just simmer but never boil
Final Notes:
Flavor of the fondue turned out much better than last year, I'm guessing it was the wine. This year I actually picked one for fondue instead of just using what we had around.
Out of curiosity, we tried some fondue before adding the plum brandy, and both agreed it tastes better with it. Just good to know it's doing something.
Potatoes were a nice swap for the bread, would do that again. And it was super easy to make all the veggies in the oven.
Pickled Brussels sprouts were much better than the onions. It's nice to have something so sharp to break up all the rich cheese. Maybe get two pickled vegetables next year for a little more variety?
We mostly use the pears because we have had them around, probably wouldn't buy one on it's own just for fondue. Luke doesn't really like them as much as the apple but I like having more diverse dipping choices.
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