Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Did you know...

...that fondue is the national dish of Switzerland?

So it says on the booklet I picked up in the cheese section at the grocery store today. It's got yummy recipes in it using delicious Swiss cheeses like Emmentaler and Gruyère, and some Swiss cheeses I've never tried like Vacherin Fribourgeois (it's such a common cheese), Appenzell, Tilsiter, Raclette, Tête de Moine (I hear they love it in Iowa), and Sap Sago.

*sigh* So many cheeses, so little time! And money...some of this stuff is about $15 a pound. I do enjoy trying different cheeses, though! It's fun to get small amounts of exotic cheeses and try them. I think I'll try something really funky next time we do a snack food feast, like Zhand'on, the Tibetan mountain goat cheese, or Ataturkanaa, the cheese made from the milk of the yak, buried in the Alaskan permafrost, and then fermented for 20 years in a barrel of wine made from the ziga grape.

Yeah, that's all a bunch of crap I made up. Anyone want to be my partner in Balderdash? I can talk a good game.

I'm feeling quiet today, still a little bit in Chicago and still a little bit rock and roll. I guess that makes me the Donny Osmond of Nutwood. Hmm.

We will shortly return you to your regularly scheduled feisty Beth. Please be patient and please do not adjust your set. This seems like a good time for a visit to the cheese shop. What a senseless waste of human life.


12 comments:

  1. All I want to say is Gesundheit :o)

    Hope my fiesty little "girl" returns soon.

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  2. I didn't know that. I bought a fondue melting pot but still haven't used it. I really don't know what to do with it....LOL So, why did I buy it?

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  3. Willing to take you up on the 'fun'-due!! Tete de moine ... that sounds like something I would say!

    You aren't the only one who talks a good game in the kitchen. When I say I like to 'try', that is what I mean! If I could 'do', then I would DO IT!!

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  4. (Chuckles) Still suffering sour grapes dear friend from missing the after party? I have a feeling life will offer up another chance. Hope your enjoying some relaxation in Nutwood. (Hugs)Indigo

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  5. Love that Python sketch!
    I like Gruyere cheese in my homemade mac and cheese, but it isn't the easiest to find around here and it can be a bit pricey.

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  6. A couple of februaries ago, I found myself at a Fondue restaurant for a wine tasting/feasting event with my sister. It was grand fun, but at the end of the night I was not impressed with either the wines nor the cheese fondues. The chocolate dessert fondue however, won hands down. :)

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  7. The best part of that sketch is when Cleese finally snaps at the three dudes dancing in the corner.

    "It's the single most popular cheese in the world!"

    "I'm afraid there's not much of a demand for it in these parts..."

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  8. My first introduction to fondue was in Switzerland, when I was in college way too many years ago. It was wonderful, but followed by two very bad experiences. I was the guest at a fondue party when I was in my 20s at which the hot oil ignited the tablecloth and nearly burned down the dining room. Later (just a few years ago), I went to a WAY overpriced fondue restaurant with friends and had an arrogant waiter who spoiled the experience for all of us. All of that being said, melted chees is still a delicious, decadent pleasure.

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  9. Not too adventurous on cheese because its so pricey...and my only experience with fondue is the Melting Pot! But...the cheeses we tried there were sure yummy!! The wine and cheese parties we've been to have been great, but I wouldn't know how to pair!

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  10. I appreciate the hell out of cheese. Not because I'm from Wisconsin and formerly owned a CheeseHead. But because there is an endless list of ways to enjoy cheese!

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  11. You would get along with my mom & stepdad, they are really into cheese. They go to the cheese shop and buy all kinds of wierd cheeses. He brings some in to the office for lunch and some of them smell just horrible! I was walking around one day looking to see where someone barfed ~ it was his cheese!! I do enjoy a nice fondue though once in a while but I am more of a chocolate gal. ;)

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  12. I started to say that I'd never met
    a cheese I didn't like, but I'd
    forgotten Limberger. I could not
    get close enough to try for the
    smell. I love a good fondue. Cheese,
    that is, I am among the definite
    minority that does not do chocolate.

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I'm funny how, I mean funny like I'm a clown, I amuse you?