Swiss Fondue

Now that the weather is getting cooler, there is nothing more sociable than a pot of Swiss Fondue.( for the Swiss, fondue is ALWAYS made of cheese) There is a game assoicated with the dish : If someone loses their piece of bread of the fork they have to pay a penalty! What that will be is up to you!
The trick to a successful fondue  is to ensure that the cheese  sauce stays smooth. Cheese has a propensity to get stringy or to "seize up" into clumps, the fat separating from the proteins. Do not over heat as cheese tends to ball up at higher temperatures and if possible use a fondue pot. Don't let the cheese cool down too much before serving, as it tends to get stringier and tougher as it cools. Don't over stir the cheese, doing so will encourage stringiness.. so many don'ts!!
When we lived in the Ticino, we would use Grappa instead of kirsh.

Ingredients

1/2 pound (Real) Swiss cheese such as Jarlsberg or Emmenthaler, shredded  (or try Vacherin Fribourgeois)
1/2 pound Gruyere cheese, shredded ( aged about 8 months is best)
2 tablespoons cornstarch *
1 garlic clove, peeled, halved crosswise
1 cup dry white wine like a Sauvignon Blanc
1/4 cup kirsh
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Pinch nutmeg
*The cornstarch helps stabilize the sauce
Crusty bread, cubed, for dipping (can be a day old as it does not need to be super fresh - in fact a bit old is better!)When you cut the bread, try make sure that each piece had a bit of crust.

Method

1 Place the shredded cheese and cornstarch in a plastic bag. Seal, shake to coat the cheese with cornstarch. Set aside.

2 Rub the inside of a 4-quart pot with the garlic, then discard. Over medium heat, add the wine and lemon juice and bring to a gentle simmer. Gradually stir the cheese into the wine. Stir constantly in a zig-zag pattern to prevent the cheese from seizing and balling up. Cook until the cheese is just melted and creamy. Do not let boil. Once smooth, stir in the kirsh and  nutmeg.
3 Transfer the cheese to a fondue serving pot, set over a flame to keep warm.
4. Spear the bread cubes with a fondue fork, dip in mixture till coated in cheese, and EAT!!!

Serves 4.

NB: As the cheese gets less and less, scrape the sides with your bread.When almost all the cheese is gone, lower the flame under the fondue pot.The last bit of cheese will be all toasty and yummy!

Chicken Liver Pâté

This is a great pâté and one of my favourites. Its great with toast, crackers or melba toast.

We would often have "Dip" parties - everyone would bring a dip and a bottle of wine and we would spend a great evening!

I know some people are scared of liver, or dislike the taste but they should give this a try!

Ingredients

1kg of chicken livers ( washed, trimmed and cleaned)

some olive oil,

1 tsp fresh rosemary, very finely chopped

1tsp sage very finely chopped

zest of one small orange,

2 cloves garlic, crushed,

salt and pepper to taste

100ml of brandy,

100ml of red wine,

250g of butter,

2 bay leaves.

About 8 bacon rashers (fry - or grill - and put on paper towels to remove the oil. Don't let the bacon crisp however, it has to be cooked just enough)

Method

Fry the chicken livers in the olive oil, and add the herbs, orange zest and garlic.

Do not over fry or the livers will get tough. they should be brown on the outside but left pink inside.

Season, remove from the pan and put into a blender

Put the pan back heat and pour in 100ml of brandy, 100ml of red wine, and bring to the boil, stirring and scraping any residue from the sides.

Pour this into the blender along with 200g of butter and process until smooth.

Line a terrine with the cooked bacon strips

Pour the pâté into a suitable terrine and decorate the top with a bay leaf or two, a couple of sprigs of rosemary and some curls of orange zest.

Melt 50g of butter very gently over a low heat – do not allow it to bubble – and carefully pour the clear part of the butter over the top of the pâté, making sure all is under a thin layer of clarified butter.

Leave it to cool, and then put it in the refrigerator, covered with a lid or foil.

You can turn it out to serve, it looks rather pretty - or else just leave in the terrine.

Antipasto di Melanzane - eggplant/aubergine dip

Aubergines/Eggplant/melanzane are abundant in the Mediterranean. This was a favourite dip to make in summer.

INGREDIENTS

I large aubergine

1 bunch of parsley - chopped

2 large garlic cloves, crushed

2 teaspoons pesto (see my recipe)

1 tbs breadcrumbs

Juice of 1/2 lemon

1/2 cup Olive Oil

Salt and pepper

METHOD

Set over to 200C for 1/2 hour

Make a cut in the aubergine and put on a grilling plate in the oven.

Put in the oven for about 1/2 hr when the inside should be soft and easy to spoon out

Put the pulp into a blender together with the rest of the ingredients until the mixture looks like a dense cream.

Leave in the fridge for a day and serve with a drizzle of olive oil and a garnish of basil