Forget Fondue

Forget fondue.  Really.  All you need is a Mont d'Or, one garlic clove, and a little white wine. 

Mont d'Or is a French cheese that comes in a round wooden case, much like a camembert or brie or many typical French cheeses, originating from some of the mountains on the Swiss border.  However, Mont d'Or is a seasonal cheese that is only available in the winter. 

We were completely ignorant about this cheese until David Lebovitz blogged about it last week.  As usual, we followed his instructions to the letter, and we were not disappointed. 

When we purchased our Mont d'Or at our neighborhood fromagerie, Mr. Oil asked the sales clerk how to prepare it properly.  She looked at him as if he had just asked how to breathe air, and replied, "White wine."  Evidently, we had shocked her with our uneducated queries. 

Our next stop was of course the wine shop, where upon explaining that we planned to eat a Mont d'Or that evening, the man simply nodded and without hesitating sold us a bottle of white wine from Savoie. 

At home, we duly sliced a garlic clove, made small openings in the top of the cheese, pushed the garlic slices into the cheese, wrapped it in foil (top open), and poured on a small amount of white wine.  We then placed it in the oven for about half an hour.

Mont d'Or is a creamy cheese to begin with, but when it warms up, mixed with the garlic and white wine, and you slice a fresh baguette that you dunk directly in your bubbly, warm, oh-my-I-just-went-to-cheese-heaven confection, it is an entirely new cheese experience.

It is the second week of March, and it is snowing here in Paris.  Part of me is dismayed because I very much want to spring to start already, but another part of me is thinking - time for another Mont d'Or!