Fondue

We went to the melting pot on free cheese fondue week & got the only non-alcoholic gluten-free cheese with vegetables fondue they had. Spinach-Artichoke flavor. I loved it. So I made it at home. Here's what I did:

Use a double boiler
1 part vegetable broth
2 parts cheese - used 1/2 Fontina and 1/2 Butterkase, shredded and tossed in cornstarch
Stir until goopy
Add 1 large clove garlic, minced, and lots of fresh spinach, chopped small, and artichoke hearts from a can, also chopped small. Stir.

Serve with raw baby carrots, raw broccoli florets, and green apple chunks. And bread for Michael.

So simple! I love this recipe. I ended up using about 2/3 c vege broth, and it was colored brown instead of clear, which changed the color of the fondue but it still tasted good. I used about the right amount of cheese, but a lot of cornstarch, so as it heated up, it really thickened up and I had to add broth. It was a trick to balance how warm but NOT HOT the double boiler was getting. I wish I'd used more spinach. It cooked well in the cheese. and I used 3 artichoke hearts. Again, could have used more.

One thing to add maybe next time: Parmesan cheese. The restaurant added grated stuff, but I only have the can, so I left it out. I didn't notice it missing, and the hubby was fine without it, so we let it go. Also the restaurant wanted to add hot sauce. I declined then. I similarly declined this time.

I don't want to know how many calories/fat it has. Its all from the cheese - the veges were perfectly healthy. We ate it for dinner. Michael ate almost a whole roll, although I wish I'd had different flavors of bread for him like the restaurant did. He says its heavy, and just sits there. Which is true. We ate a lot of watermelon later that night. But we didn't need any meat or other veges for dinner. I probably could have eaten a whole other batch. And made myself really sick in the process, so I guess its good that we ran out. But somehow I just love this gooey-ness. Its good the cheese is expensive so we won't have it every week. I might, otherwise.

Now I think I'm going to have homemade pizza for dinner. What is it with me and this cheese-kick?

Quinoa chicken casserole

Used minced yellow onion (from the freezer), about 2 T.
Diced 1/2 Green Bell Pepper and 1 stalk celery.
Used corn oil & olive oil to soften those 3. Took them out. Added 1 can chicken, and Canadian Chicken seasoning.Let go for awhile to soak up the extra can chicken water and get good & spicy.
Used leftover steamed broccoli, about 2c.

Boiled 1/2 c quinoa in 1c+ of water. I let it go until there was just a little water left, but it wasn't sticking to the bottom of the pot. Then I let it sit to soak.

Glass bowl: about 1/2 c mayonnaise with 1% milk, nonfat milk powder, and half-&-half with salt, pepper, and 1/4 c parmesan cheese. 

Mixed veges & chicken into sauce. It should be wet - I had to add more milk. Added quinoa in, and some more milk. Poured it all into a wide dish. Topped with pecan pieces, onion flakes, and more canadian chicken seasoning. Cooked at 350 for 25 minutes until warmed through.

Notes - make more of everything. Use big bowl for making sauce so adding ingredients is easier. Spray sides of roating pan. Cook at a lower temperature.