Cheddar and Hard Cider Fondue

From the Food Network

Serves 6

• 1 (12-ounce) bottle hard cider
• 3/4 cup chicken broth, homemade or low-sodium canned
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped (I actually ran out of garlic so I used garlic powder)
• 1/2 pound Gruyere, grated (I could not find this so I subbed with Swiss)
• 1/2 pound sharp Vermont or New York yellow cheddar
• 3 tablespoons corn starch
• 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (I used paprika and red pepper flakes)
• Salt
• 1 tablespoon Bourbon, whiskey or apple jack, optional (I used whiskey)
• I also added a little spicy mustard because Swiss is milder than Gruyere

Fondue Dippers:

Cooked chicken and apple sausages, chorizo, or mini hot dogs; sliced baguette or black bread, radishes, roasted shallots, roasted mushrooms or small fingerlings or baby potatoes, pears, apples, or pretzels. (I used pumpernickel pretzels, apple slices and Lil' Smokies)

Heat cider, broth, Worcestershire, and garlic in a medium pot over medium heat and simmer for 5 minutes.Toss the cheeses together in a medium bowl. Sift the corn starch over the cheese, and toss to coat lightly.

Using a wooden spoon, sprinkle some cheese mixture into the warm liquid and continue to stir in small amounts of cheese until it is all incorporated and the fondue is smooth and melted, about 15 minutes. Stir in cayenne, salt and Bourbon, if using.

Transfer to a fondue pot or double boiler and serve with desired dippers.

My Review: I took this to a Halloween party over the weekend. It had a good flavor, but I must have done something wrong when I put it together. The recipe said it was an 'intermediate' recipe - maybe I'm still at a beginner level!

The texture was more like soup than fondue so it was hard to eat. I didn't want to bring a fondue pot to the party so I used a little crockpot instead. (That might have been the source of the texture problem!) It was OK - but I don't think I would make this again.