It’s 3 p.m. and the temperature just went up to zero!!! Way to go, Mother Nature. It started at -14 degrees this morning. My dog wouldn’t even go #2 out there. Last night my husband’s car died at work so I drove him in this morning. It took an hour to come home two miles, seeing police everywhere, blocking highway ramps, getting lost and seeing seven wrecked cars (there’s no new snow). One was a sole rollover where they had to pry open the windshield to get the passenger (s) out.
I got home to get the dog and bring her for her annual/rabies/bordatella at the vet and got lost (again) going there. Actually I just took the wrong ramp. There are abandoned cars everywhere and people who parked on the street and their batteries are dead overnight.
Word has it that it will be nearly 40 degrees later on in the week. Remind me to wear shorts and a t-shirt to walk the dog. Snow, of course. One really strange thing is that every morning steam rises off Lake Michigan. I know that water is awfully cold but at -14 it looks like a hot spring out there!
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Fondue
I recently read a recipe for fondue with Irish Cheddar and Guinness. Usually good about making a recipe once before riffing off it, I decided to go for broke.
We are currently in the Dairy State, home of The Fonz and Richie Cunningham and the Wiscons Inn. I figured why not try it with local ingredients? So I took two cups of Wisconsin Muenster, melted it, added 2T cornstarch/water slurry then thinned it with a few T New Glarus Ale.
Accompaniments were boiled potatoes, roasted brussels sprouts, roasted carrots and a baguette torn in pieces. I took what remained to my butchers this morning because they wanted to taste it.
Think of where you live. In Scotland I’d use a mature cheddar and Tennants. Or a Strongbow hard apple cider but that’s from England (a no no for Scots).
New York State, a hearty cheddar and local microbrew. Then think of what you want to serve with it, to dip. Shucks, I’m so excited about this as at zero degrees outside one needs something warm, fondue is perfect and I may even get a fondue pot, one that is stove-proof for heating and then goes into a container to serve. Candle or Sterno, your preference.
I served ours in a glass bowl with skewers for kebabs. Oh, well, when in doubt, punt. Cheers! Dee
Cooking with Dee 