Tomato Fondue

Me and Bailey treated ourselves to a super cute fondue set not long ago. I loved the design on it and it was perfect to go in our new kitchen. I told Bailey there and then, especially as the picture on the fondue was quite romantic, that I would be cooking him a fondue for Valentine's Day.

When I was younger, my mum and dad used to make this amazing tomato fondue that was packed with rich tomatoey flavour and loads of stringy cheese. It used to be so much fun to eat this, despite there being quite a bit of stiff competition to get my bit of food into the fondue before my brother could get a look in.

I got on the blower to my dad who dug out the recipe. I decided to make it with some nice bread as well as some chopped peppers and cucumbers and roast potatoes and carrots.

I did make a few changes to the recipe here and there, I spiced it up a bit and we didn't have any white wine which should have gone into the fondue, but it still tasted lovely.

So, what could be more romantic than sharing a candlelit retro fondue with your loved one?

The truth is, it was very lovely and lots of fun, but romance did go out of the window a few times as I almost threw fondue all over the table in order to get a good bit of cheese that I didn't want Bailey to get to before I did.

I love this recipe and will definitely be making it again. I also think I'm going to try and bring fondue back into fashion in our house. Watch this space.

Recipe:

1 onion
2 cloves garlic
1 pinch chilli flakes
1 pinch paprika
Salt and pepper
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tsp Splenda
1 tin chopped tomatoes
1 and a half tbsp tomato purée
Few tbsp water
100g Emmental

To serve
Chunks of bread, crudités, roast veg, anything you fancy dipping in basically!

Finely chop the onions and garlic and fry off in a large saucepan with the chilli flakes, paprika, salt and pepper. Once the onions have softened a little, add the lemon juice, vinegar and Splenda.

Cook for a few more minutes before adding the tinned tomatoes. Reduce the heat and leave to simmer for about half an hour, until the tomatoes have reduced down.

Add the tomato purée. If the mixture is starting to look a bit too dry, add some water a tablespoon at a time until it looks a bit wetter.

Grate the Emmental. Once all the dipping bits and bobs and your fondue are all ready to go, add the Emmental to the saucepan and allow to melt, stirring thoroughly. You will see the cheese start to melt and combine with the sauce.

Once the cheese has melted, transfer the mixture to the fondue and you are ready to start dipping!