3 Kids, a Mom, & a Kitchen: Fun with Fondue!
Every summer the kids and I head to the east coast to spend a few weeks with our extended family. While in New Jersey this year, we decided to make fondue with my kids’ cousins for lunch one Sunday afternoon. We had a blast cooking together and, more importantly, eating together. To begin with, kids absolutely love eating food with sticks. Second, there are many ingredients to prepare when setting up a fondue bar, so there are oodles of ways to get the kids involved with the cooking process. The food ends up being just plain delicious, making all the “hard” work worth it! A quick note on the equipment. We didn’t have a fondue pot, so we just served our fondue sauces straight from the saucepan that we cooked them in and it worked beautifully. The kids liked using the long skewers, but shorter skewers really were better for smaller hands. Rankings: Fondue Was a Huge Hit! I can’t believe what a hit fondue was with the kids! The rankings for this 3 Kids, a Mom a Kitchen recipe are pretty straightforward – smiles across the board! Here are a few suggestions:
1. Plus, there’s a lot of cheese to shred and, honestly, it’s my least favorite task, so I’m happy to pass it on! 2. Prepping veggies for roasting
If you’re making roasted veggies, it’s really easy to have the kids help drizzle olive oil and sprinkle salt and pepper over the veggies before throwing them in the oven. 3. Prepping the food that will be dipped
When you set up a fondue bar, there are lots of ingredients to prep. From washing and cutting fruit to slicing bread to putting all the food out on the platters for eating, there are tons of ways to get involved. The Tasting
Needless to say, the fondue tasting went swimmingly. The cheese fondue sauce was simple but delicious, for kids and adults alike. And hello, dark chocolate dipping sauce. Who wouldn’t love it?! The Recipes
For our fondue bar, we cooked a cheese fondue for the main dish and a chocolate fondue for dessert. Both recipes were easy to throw together and quite delicious. Kid-Friendly Cheese Fondue
By Jane Maynard
Ingredients:
1/2 pound cheddar cheese (buy it unshredded)
1/2 pound monterey jack cheese (buy it unshredded)
1 cup half half
2 tablespoons flour
3 splashes worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon dry mustard
salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
Heat half half in a medium sauce pan over medium-low to medium heat until hot and almost simmering, stirring regularly. Shred cheese, then toss with the flour in a bowl. Transfer to a fondue pot over heat or serve directly in saucepan. Simple Dark Chocolate Fondue
By Jane Maynard
Ingredients:
8 ounces good-quality dark chocolate
6 tablespoons coconut milk
Directions:
Melt chocolate in a heavy-bottomed, small saucepan over medium-low heat. Remove from heat. Serve with whatever foods sound good to you! Pretzels, berries, bananas, graham crackers, cubed pound cake, apples, pears, and marshmallows are all great options! For more updates, follow Jane on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest!
