[at-l] fond o'you

[Amy Forinash]

On Feb 1, 2011, at 5:15 PM, Bluetrail at aol.com wrote:

> Is there anything you all don't know about my life?
>  
> Anyhow, son has a girlfriend he wants to (1) impress and (2) introduce to camping.  It's a one step at a time thing, so he's going out early to set up the drive-up campsite for Feb. 14 (Valentine's Day reminder to the guys on the list).  He's got candles, tablecloth, flowers.  He wanted to know what meal he should prepare.  I first suggested veggie hot dogs.  This idea was quickly dismissed as not special enough.  Then I thought of fondue (he's vegetarian).
>  
> I have a circa 1969 fondue pot and forks.  I have a couple of recipes for a cheese fondue, but they (and most I've found online) call for grueyre, which is very pricey.  I have some kirsch, which my recipe calls for, however, I'm hoping for a recipe with less expensive cheese.
>  
> Does anyone have a foolproof fondue recipe that uses less expensive cheese?  He's going to practice the fondue by fixing it for me for my birthday next week.

I have backpacked with fondue more than once.

They sell ready made fondue at the grocery store.  It is unrefrigerated and foilpacked.  At my store, it's on the same display as the fancy cheeses.  Ask the store manager if you can't find it.  

Or search amazon for fondue under "gourmet and grocery".

Then, chop up a good chewy crusty bread into squares ahead of time at home.  Carry them in a sealed container along with a slice of apple to keep bread from going stale.  I carried a partially sliced apple and finished slicing it in camp.

I haven't tried this part yet, but I may next time because cleaning a fondue pot in camp *sucks*.  Might try cooking it in a water bath rather than in the pot itself.  I.e. dunk a freezer bag with fondue in it into boiling water.  It only needs to heat a little bit to get warm and soft.  If you cook it in a pot it *will* burn to the sides and be impossible to clean.

Best of luck to the son!

-amy