Imagine this.
It`s fiercely cold, there`s snow on the ground and you`ve spent the day cross-country skiing with friends. Your body feels wonderful from all the exercise (all those calories burned off!) and you sit in a hot tub or a sauna for a while. You are relaxed, you are healthy and life is good.
And for dinner, it gets even better. You take your relaxed body and sit down to a communal, casual meal that lends itself to good conversation and an extension of all those good feelings from the day: a fondue dinner.
Yes, it`s back. Fondue-as in chunks of French bread dipped into hot cheese, little cubes of beef cooked in oil, and bits of fruit and cake slathered in chocolate-is back, and it`s all that and more.
Fondue has become even more of a melting pot this time around. Mexican fondue, with tortillas dipped into a mixture including hot chilies and Monterey jack cheese. Mandarin fondue, with chunks of seafood cooked in a soy- ginger-and-wine broth. Bagna cauda, the Italian version of fondue, a spicy mixture of olive oil, cream and anchovies used for dipping vegetables.
Fondue, `90s-style, has all the charm of fondue in the `70s, but with the added ingredient of ethnicity. The foods we have learned to love during the last decade can be translated readily to the fondue pot.
And even though that scenario of sitting around the flaming pot after an exhilarating day on the slopes might be ultimately appealing, it`s not necessary to precede a good fondue meal with anything special. Fondue, like any other good meal, can be enjoyed anytime: after work, Saturday night with friends or Sunday evening in front of the television.
”It`s not only romantic, it`s primitive,” says John Davis, owner of Geja`s Cafe, 340 W. Armitage Ave., which serves only fondue dishes and will be celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. ”Just think about it. Cavemen sat around and cooked in a fire. It satisfies a very primal need.”
Davis even flames one of his fondues (something those cavemen probably didn`t think of) by putting orange liqueur on top of chocolate and then lighting it.
”Customers roast marshmallows in the flame before dunking them in the chocolate, so it`s very fun,” he says. (Actually, it`s also a variation on S`mores, a confection beloved by all Girl Scouts and their leaders.)
Eating fondue in a restaurant can be very romantic-all those little flames going, popping morsels into the other person`s mouth-but it`s fondue-at-home that is making the comeback.
One of the reasons is the whole back-to-hearth movement. People are entertaining at home again and wanting to be casual about it. Sharing a pot of fondue is synonymous with both casualness and conviviality. Conversation comes easily when you`re all dunking in the same pot.
And those pots themselves reflect the new variation on an old theme.
The fondue pots of the 1960s and `70s were-well, predictable. They were mostly wide-bellied and had forks with different colored handle tips.
Calphalon`s new pot has an elegant, burnished finish with forks tipped in animal heads ($120, Chef`s Catalog and other stores). Chantal has a fire-and- ice set, with a stainless steel burner set on a scupltured glass base
($100, Williams-Sonoma and other stores). Crate and Barrel has a sleek black pot and base set in a beechwood lazy susan with six bowls ($80).
The entry of many new fondue pots indicates the growing popularity of the product, but also means that sales have been spread among more companies than previously were in the market. ”It`s a strong seller, but because of all the competition, I can`t say that we`ve had a huge upturn,” said Ruth Davis, product manager for Chantal, a comment echoed by Paul Angelo LoGiudice, culinary events manager for Commercial Aluminum Cookware Co. (Calphalon).
”It`s a specialty item and sales are good. . . and there are a lot of pots on the market. The new approach with fondue is that you can cook foods more creatively and healthfully, it`s more than just dipping in oil.”
The elegance of these pots is very `90s-sleek, functional, attractive, yet geared toward casual at-home get-togethers.
”A lot of people are getting married, and fondue pots are a great gift,” says Patricia Eckerstrom, marketing coordinator at Crate and Barrel.
”There were a few years when they didn`t sell so well, but now they do.”
The following fondue recipes were developed by Susie Goldstein and Pat Dailey in the Tribune test kitchen.
MEXICAN CHEESE FONDUE
(CHILI CON QUESO)
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Yield: About 2 cups
Serve this spicy fondue as an hors d`oeuvre with tortilla chips or cut-up raw vegetables.
1 large clove garlic, peeled
1-2 jalapeno peppers, seeds reserved
1 pound sharp cheddar cheese, cut in chunks
1 can (14 or 15 ounces) whole tomatoes, drained, chopped
2 green onions, cut in 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Tortilla chips for dipping
1. Mince garlic and jalapeno in food processor. Add cheese, tomatoes and green onion. Process until blended.
2. Transfer to top of double boiler. Cook and stir until melted, about 10 minutes. Stir in milk and Worcestershire sauce. Taste for seasoning and add some reserved pepper seeds if desired. Transfer to fondue pot and keep warm.
SPICY SEAFOOD FONDUE
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Marinating time: Overnight, optional
Cooking time: 2 to 4 minutes per batch
Yield: 6 to 8 servings
Marinating the seafood overnight adds extra flavor to this oriental dish. Sea scallops, boneless and skinless chicken meat, catfish or a mixture can be used in place of the shrimp.
1 cup chicken broth or stock
3 tablespoons each: hoisin sauce, seasoned rice vinegar
1 tablespoon each: soy sauce, minced ginger, brown sugar
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2-1 teaspoon chili paste
1 1/2 pounds medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
Hoisin sesame dipping sauce, recipe follows
1. Combine broth, hoisin sauce, vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, sugar, garlic and chili paste in medium bowl. Add shrimp. Toss to mix. Refrigerate overnight if desired.
2. Remove shrimp from marinade. Transfer marinade to fondue pot. Heat to boil. Reduce to simmer.
3. Securely skewer 1 shrimp onto fondue fork. Immerse and cook in hot liquid until firm and cooked, 2 to 4 minutes. (The more shrimp in the pot at the same time requires longer cooking time, be sure to keep the liquid simmering.) Dip in hoisin sesame sauce.
Note: Scallops cook in 1 to 2 minutes. Cubes of chicken that are 1 1/2-inches cook in 3 to 5 minutes. Catfish pieces cook in 2 to 4 minutes. Make sure all pieces are uniform in size and firm when cooked.
HOISIN SESAME DIPPING SAUCE
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Yield: 1/3 cup
Chili paste with garlic can be very strong, add it gradually.
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
2 teaspoons seasoned rice vinegar
3/4-1 teaspoon chili paste with garlic
1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds, see note
1/2 green onion, finely minced
1. Combine ingredients in small bowl. Use as a dipping sauce for seafood fondue.
Note: To toast sesame seeds, bake in 350-degree oven until light brown and fragrant, 6 to 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Do not burn.
CLASSIC CHEESE FONDUE
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
Constant stirring while cooking ensures an evenly blended cheese.
1 clove garlic, split
3/4 cup dry white wine
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 pound Swiss cheese, such as Emmentaler or Gruyere or a mixture, shredded
1/4 cup whipping cream
1/2 teaspoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon each: Dijon mustard, kirsch or cherry flavored brandy
1 loaf French bread, cut in 1-inch cubes
1. Rub inside of fondue pot with cut garlic clove. Add wine, pepper and nutmeg. Heat to boil over medium heat, preferably on the stove. Slowly stir in cheese a little at a time and stir constantly until cheese has melted, about 5 minutes. If cheese begins to boil, reduce heat.
2. Combine cream and flour. Slowly pour into melted cheese and stir until blended. Stir in mustard and kirsch. Transfer pot to fondue stand. Dip cubed bread into hot melted cheese and let excess drip off. Cool slightly before eating.
HOT ITALIAN VEGETABLE FONDUE
(BAGNA CAUDA)
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Yield: 1 1/4 cups
10 to 12 servings
This is a simple, hot savory fondue dip for a crowd. Serve with raw vegetables and bread sticks for a hot dipping hors d`oeuvre. Make sure everyone eats some. The garlic and anchovies are a wonderful blend.
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 cup good quality olive oil
6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
8 flat anchovy fillets, minced
2 tablespoon whipping cream
Raw vegetables:
Green, yellow and red bell pepper strips
Carrot sticks
1 small head cauliflower
Bread sticks or 1 loaf Italian bread, cubed
1. Heat butter, oil, garlic, anchovies and cream in small saucepan over very low heat. Gently heat until flavors have blended, about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Transfer to fondue pot and dip vegetables or bread and let excess drip off.
CHOCOLATE FONDUE WITH FRESH FRUIT FOR DIPPING
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Yield: About 2 1/2 cups
6 to 8 servings
This rich dessert should be made with good quality chocolate to ensure the best flavor. The flame under the chocolate should be very low; otherwise chocolate will burn.
1 cup whipping cream
1 pound good quality semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 tablespoon vanilla, rum or orange flavored liqueur, optional
Assorted fruit:
1 pint strawberries, hulled
1 fresh pineapple, trimmed, cored, cubed
2 seedless tangerines or clementines, peeled, sectioned
2 bananas, peeled, sliced, tossed in lemon juice
1 small bunch seedless red or green grapes
1 cup dried apricots, optional
1. Heat cream to boil in small saucepan. Reduce heat and stir in chocolate. Remove from heat. Transfer warm chocolate to fondue pot. Stir in optional liqueur.
2. Put prepared fruit on large serving platter. Dip fruit as desired with fondue forks into warm chocolate.
