February 8 & 9: Fondue

When Dave and I were dating to celebrate the milestone of dating for a year, he took me to dinner and a play.  We had one of those coupon books and we had never heard of The Melting Pot before and the coupon was for a free chocolate fondue.  We thought it sounded like fun!  When we got there and were seated, we opened up the menu and we were not prepared at all for the experience!  The prices were way more than we had anticipated.  Our waiter was really great and explained how it all worked and that our best value was to do their BIG NIGHT OUT (a four course meal).  So, we decided to do it.  It was amazing!  We started off with a cheese fondue that we dipped apples, carrots, celery and bread in.  If you want more dippers you can get more.  

The next thing we had was a salad.  We chose the Ceasar Salad and it was so good!  They have these parmesan encrusted pine nuts in the salad that make it so good! 

Next is the main course.  You chose a cooking style to cook your meat in, and we chose Mojo (a citrus oil).  We got fillet minian, chicken, shrimp, tortellini, steak and  pork to cook in it along with refillable vegetables (broccoli, red potatoes, squash and mushrooms).  They give you lots of dips to dip your meat in as well.  It was so much fun! 

Then came what I consider one of the best parts, the chocolate fondue. They have so many varieties to chose from.  We chose the Yin-Yang one that is white and dark chocolate.  They give you strawberries, bananas, pound cake, brownies, cheese cake, and marshmallows to dip in the chocolate.  It was so yummy!  

We had way more food than we could eat and because it is really a long dining experience that we weren't prepared for we had to rush to make the play.  
Dave has taken me there since and we were able to enjoy the experience without rushing, but because the price of it is so high, I decided to see if I could do it myself.  So last year for our anniversary I made Dave a fondue experience.  I didn't do all of the courses because I don't have enough fondue pots, but we have done the cheese fondue on its own just for fun before too.  Here are the recipes for the main course cooking pot and the best sauce for red potatoes. 

Mojo Cooking Style:

Ingredients:
5 1/2 cups warm water
Juice of 1/2 orange
Juice of 1/2 lime
3 tablespoons finely chopped onion
1 tablespoon finely chopped celery
1 tablespoon finely chopped carrot
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon freshly ground pepper
***Whisk the water orange juice, lime juice, onion, celery, carrot, garlic, cilantro, salt and pepper in a bowl until combined.  Pour into a fondue pot.  Bring to a rapid simmer over medium heat.  Thread a piece of meat or vegetable on a fondue fork.  Cook in the broth to the desired degree of doneness.


Green Goddess Sauce:
3/4 cup cubed softened cream cheese
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh chives
2 tablespoons minced white onion
***Whisk the cream cheese milk, sour cream, parsley, chives and onion in a bowl until combined.  Chill, covered, until serving time

I have The Melting Pot Recipe Book, so if you are ever looking for some fun fondue ideas or new sauces I would be more than happy to share.
Fondue can make for a fun experience!