Traditional cheese fondue

SERVES four-six TIME 30 mins LEVEL Easy

If you don’t have a fondue pot, simply make your fondue in a good-looking saucepan. To serve, place the saucepan on a raised wire rack and light a tealight candle underneath to keep the cheese warm. Use forks for an alternative to skewers (I find forks hold the bread be er – no fishing around the bo om of the pot for lost pieces of bread)

Ingredients

½ peeled garlic clove (do not crush), to rub 375ml (1½ cups) dry white wine 15ml (1 tbsp) cornflour 30ml (2 tbsp) water 225g Emmenthal cheese, grated

225g Gruyère, grated 15ml (1 tbsp) kirsch liqueur (optional) salt and freshly ground black pepper, to

taste

1 French baguette, cut into chunks and

toasted in the oven (preheated to 1800C) until golden and crunchy

HOW TO DO IT 1 . Rub the inside

of a small saucepan with the ½ garlic clove, then discard the garlic. Add the wine to a pot and simmer, about 10 minutes, until the alcohol has cooked off and the wine has reduced to a few tablespoons.

2 . Stir together

the cornflour and water until smooth and set aside until needed.

3 . Add

the cheeses to the pot and place over very low heat, stirring continuously, until the cheese has just melted (do not boil at this stage – the cheese will end up as a stringy ball). Stir the cornflour mixture into the cheese and simmer over medium heat, stirring,

until thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the kirsch, if desired, then taste and season accordingly.

4 . Serve,

as described in the recipe introduction, with chunks of toasted baguette for dipping.