Fondue party

Long time no update! It's been a busy (and snowy) couple of weeks, with the start of classes and the never-ending snowfall. It seems like my days were either stuck indoors while it stormed outside or racing around in lab scrambling to make up the lost time from snow days.

Of course, I've had plenty of opportunity to bake, but most of the things that I've been making are repeat recipes, such as my signature mochi cupcakes or the always-favorite dark chocolate cookies. The snowy dreariness just hasn't lent itself to much creativity and inspiration.

Today's recipe is something a little different. We again volunteered our dorm room for an open-doors party, but instead of baking something, I came up with the idea of a fondue party. I initially thought it might be complicated to pull off, but it turned out to be much, much easier than expected!

The fondue was easy enough to make - just melting cheese or chocolate over a stovetop. It took less than thirty minutes to make both the sweet and the savory fondues. We didn't have any fondue pots, but we used our rice cookers instead. It kept the dips smooth and warm as people milled in and out of our room.

We got a variety of dippers - broccoli, bell peppers, and carrots for the cheese dip and marshmallows, strawberries, and bananas for the chocolate! The apples could be dipped in either. All we had to do was arrange the dippers in cute little patterns alongside the rice cookers and it turned out to be a hit!

Even better, all these ingredients ended up costing less than $35! Not bad for serving a whole bunch of people. I'd definitely recommend this next time you want to host a party. Stay tuned for the next post (which will be soon!) where I return to my usual fare of baking.

Gruyère-Swiss cheese fondue dip (makes 4-6 servings)
(Adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe)

• 8 oz of Gruyère cheese (shredded)
• 6 oz of Swiss cheese (shredded)
• 2Tbsp cornstarch
• 1 cup of chicken stock
• ⅛ tsp lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp minced garlic
• ¼ tsp black pepper
• ¼ tsp nutmeg
• Dash of paprika

1. In a medium sauce pot on medium-high heat, mix chicken stock, lemon juice, and garlic until it simmers. 
2. Coat both cheeses with cornstarch and gradually add to simmering stock as you stir constantly. 
3. When cheese is completely melted, add the pepper, nutmeg, and paprika and remove pot from heat. 
4. Transfer fondue to fondue pot or rice cooker to keep warm. 
5. Serve with various dippers - broccoli, carrots, apples, bell peppers, and more!
6. Enjoy!

Triple chocolate fondue dip (makes 4-6 servings)
(Adapted from Ghirardelli)

• 1¼ cup of heavy whipping cream
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 Tbsp of unsalted butter
• 4 oz of bittersweet chocolate
• 4 oz of semi-sweet chocolate
• 4 oz of white chocolate

1. In a medium sauce pot on medium-high heat, mix cream, vanilla, and butter until it simmers. 
2. Turn heat down to low and gradually add chocolate while stirring. 
3. When the chocolate is completely melted, remove pot from heat. 
4. Transfer fondue to fondue pot or rice cooker to keep warm. 
5. Serve with various dippers - apples, bananas, marshmallows, strawberries, and more!
6. Enjoy!