New Years Eve our wonderful friends Susan and Kurt hosted my fiancee and I for a dinner at their home in Ithaca, NY. They wined and dined us with champagne and sturgeon caviar, and made us the world’s greatest swiss cheese fondue.

It was so phenomenal that I went out and bought a fondue pot that weekend and made the exact recipe that Susan was kind enough to share. Although I do not recommend making this recipe on a daily basis, it is one you are going to want to hold onto if you’re an entertainer like me.

I love to dip savory and sweet items in this cheese. Tuscan bread cubes, pear slices, apricots, and red skinned potato chunks are all great for dipping into this melted cheese, although anything would taste delicious with this cheese… it’s that good.

This recipe will easily feed 4 and takes 15 minutes to prep and 15 minutes to cook, 30 in total. Not only is it interactive and fun, but it will really “wow” your guests.

For this Swiss Cheese Fondue you will need:

Pears, apricots, tuscan bread for dipping

- 1 garlic clove

- 1 pound Gruyere grated

- 1/2 pound Swiss cheese, grated

- 1 cup dry white wine

- 1 tablespoon & 1 teaspoon cornstarch

- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

- 1 1/2 tablespoons kirsch (optional)

- freshly ground pepper

- Freshly grated nutmeg

Begin by rubbing the inside of a cheese fondue pot or medium enameled cast iron casserole with the garlic clove and discard of the garlic. That’s right, you don’t have to own a fondue pot to make this incredible cheese sauce, but it is recommended.

Combine the grated Gruyere and Swiss cheese with the wine, cornstarch, and lemon juice in the fondue pot and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally until the cheeses begin to melt, about 5 minutes. Add the kirsch and a generous pinch of pepper and nutmeg and cook, stirring gently until creamy and smooth, about 10 minutes.

Do not over cook or the fondue will get extremely stringy. Serve immediately.

I didn’t want super soft bread to dip, so I picked a crunchy garlic infused bread and cubed it, then sprinkled it with olive oil, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper for a little heat. Pop in the oven at 350 for about 5 minutes will give them a little crunch.

This is a recipe you will want to cut out and save for a great entertaining party. I hope you enjoy! Happy entertaining.