After a frosty day of snowmobiling or cross-country skiing, cozying up to the fire and a rich cheese fondue seems like a perfect ending. Cheese fondue originated in Switzerland, but chocolate fondue was created in 1964 by Konrad Egli, a Swiss-born chef working in New York. Kinda like old world meets new. So today at Cottagedaily, we are bringing you the best of both worlds, Three-cheese fondue with Champagne and Toblerone dark chocolate honey-almond fondue. These are fun dishes to make with a gang of people, particularly if you plan on spending New Year’s eve at the cottage. The champagne will definitely not go to waste.

Three-Cheese Fondue with Champagne (Bon Appetit February 2001)

Ingredients

• 4 tsp cornstarch
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/4 cups dry brut Champagne
• 1 large shallot
• 2 cups coarsely grated Gruyere cheese (about 7 ounces)
• 1 1/3 cup coarsely grated Emmenthal cheese (about 5 ounces)
• 1/2 cup diced rindless Brie or Camembert cheese (about 3 ounces)
• Generous pinch of ground nutmeg
• Pinch of ground white pepper
• 1 French-bread baguette, crust left on
• Cubes of apple and pear
• Roasted potatoes
• Julienne raw red bell peppers
• Blanched broccoli florets

Preparation

Stir cornstarch and lemon juice in a small bowl until cornstarch dissolves; set aside. Combine Champagne and shallots in fondue pot or heavy medium saucepan; simmer over medium heat 2 minutes. Remove pot from heat. Add all cheeses and stir to combine. Stir in cornstarch mixture. Return fondue pot to medium heat and stir until cheeses are melted and smooth and fondue thickens and boils, about 12 minutes. Season fondue with nutmeg and white pepper. Place over candle or canned heat burner to keep warm. Serve with cubed bread and other prepared foods and left over Champagne.

Makes 2 generous servings.

Toblerone Dark Chocolate Honey-Almond Fondue (Bon Appetit December 1997)

Ingredients

• 6 tbsp whipping cream
• 3 tbsp honey
• 2 3.52 ounce bars Toblerone bittersweet chocolate or 7 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 1 tbsp Kirsch (clear cherry brandy)
• 1/4 tsp almond extract
• Assorted fruit (whole strawberries, 1 inch think peeled banana, orange segments, large marshmellows, cubed angel food cake, cubed apple)

Preparation

Bring cream and honey to simmer in heavy medium saucepan. Add chocolate; whisk until melted. Remove from heat. Whisk in Kirsch and almond extract. Pour into fondue pot or bowl. Place on platter, surrounded with fruit. Serve with skewers.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

If anyone has any other fondue suggestions or tips, I would love to hear from you.

Cheers,

Julie

PS - Tomorrow I am off to try snowshoeing with my buddy Lois from Natural Trekking - see Friday’s blog for details on our adventure in the mountains.

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 29th, 2007 at 6:00 am and is filed under Entertaining, Food. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.