Fontina Fonduta with White Truffle Butter
“The basic technique of slowly melting a single cheese, such as the Italian Fontina Val d’Aosta, with the help of whole milk, rich egg yolks, and the best-quality butter can also be applied to several different cheeses blended to your own taste.” says Chester Hastings in The Cheesemonger's Kitchen.
“When shopping for fontina, look for real Fontina Valle d'Aosta, which is marked with the official, ‘Fontina Zona di Produzione Regione Autonoma, Valle d’Aosta, DOP.’ The unbelievable quality of the raw milk, the mastered traditional techniques employed, and the singularly sweet flavors from the spruce-wood shelves on which the cheese wheels are aged cannot be mimicked or replicated anywhere else in the world.
“If you have access to fresh white truffles, thinly slice them over the top of this fonduta. More than likely you'll need a drizzle of truffle oil or—as I prefer—a beautiful farm butter from the Poitous-Charentes region of France studded with fresh white truffles as show in the photograph.”
“When shopping for fontina, look for real Fontina Valle d'Aosta, which is marked with the official, ‘Fontina Zona di Produzione Regione Autonoma, Valle d’Aosta, DOP.’ The unbelievable quality of the raw milk, the mastered traditional techniques employed, and the singularly sweet flavors from the spruce-wood shelves on which the cheese wheels are aged cannot be mimicked or replicated anywhere else in the world.
“If you have access to fresh white truffles, thinly slice them over the top of this fonduta. More than likely you'll need a drizzle of truffle oil or—as I prefer—a beautiful farm butter from the Poitous-Charentes region of France studded with fresh white truffles as show in the photograph.”
Ingredients
- ½ pound Fontina Val d'Aosta cheese cut into 1-inch cubes
- 2 cups whole milk
- Freshly cracked black pepper
- 4 egg yolks beaten
- 8 ounces white truffle butter at room temperature
- Bread cubed for dipping
Instructions
- Place the fontina and half of the milk in a double boiler or a large bowl set over a pot of boiling water. When the cheese begins to melt, add a few grindings of black pepper. Stir gently with a wooden spoon for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the cheese is completely melted.
- Add the egg yolks and the butter and stir to combine. Meanwhile, gently warm the remaining cup of milk in another saucepan. Slowly add the warm milk to the fonduta and stir well until smooth.
- Pour into a large fondue pot or divide among individual fondue pots and serve hot with skewers or bread cubes.
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