Nothing says 70s like a cheese fondue ...

Last week my sister and her boyfriend came to spend the weekend in London and stayed with us in the Barbican (we've had a lot more family visits since we moved here from south west London!). We made cheese fondue when they got back from the theatre - you'll probably notice that the photos are a bit more professional thanks to Hatty!

The recipe is taken from this book, first published in 1970:

The book was the "clue" for my birthday present last year - a Catherine Holm fondue set that you'll see in all its glory below - and has some great text about holding fondue parties, including suggested forfeits for guests that drop their bread into the fondue...

The basic recipe, which is the starting point for most other recipes in the book, is very straightforward. I recommend getting the best quality cheese you can, even if at involves talking to the strange cheese counter person in the supermarket. 

Ingredients:

1 clove of garlic

1 1/2 cups dry white wine

1 tsp lemon juice

3-400g grated emmentaal cheese

3-499g grated Gruyere cheese

1 tbs cornflour

Pepper, nutmeg and paprika to taste

Method:

Rub the inside of the fondue pot with the peeled garlic.

Light the fuel and heat the wine and lemon juice over a low flame.

Add the cheese gradually, stirring continuously in a figure of eight motion until all the cheese is melted.

Add some cornflour (mixed with some kirsch if you have it, water if not) to thicken, and season.

And that's it! The book also advises that if the cheese is too thick, add more wine and if it's too thin, add more cheese. Which goes to show that most things in life can be resolved by adding either more cheese or more wine...

I like to serve this fondue with a crisp salad with a vinegar-y dressing to cut through the cheesiness, and a variety of dipping options as well as the standard French bread, such as cherry tomatoes, chorizo or frankfurters:

Enjoy!


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