Brrrrrr….There’s a Blizzard!

My salad hating self made an appearance last night.  You know what I’m talking about – that side of yourself that can stand vegetables, can’t stand the thought of a green leafy salad, can’t stand the idea of eating anything green unless maybe its candy coated.   Don’t pretend that you don’t have that side of yourself!  Even the healthiest of us splurge on a frozen yogurt once in a while.  Right?
No, a salad would not cut it last night.  I needed comfort food.  You know, the kind of food that makes your toes curl up and your insides go all warm and gooey just at the mere thought of the food?  That’s what I needed.  Hot from the stove chicken pot pie, crispy fried chicken, or warm buttery biscuits would have been a dream come true.  But since it is August, it is not time for fall food yet, not time for crock pots and comfort. 

Moms always have a solution and luckily mine came up with going out to eat for BBQ and fried okra.  We both had a pulled pork sandwich (merely a vehicle for BBQ sauce) and little bowls of golden fried okra.  The BBQ was OK, but the okra hit the spot.  It also became a vehicle for the BBQ sauce.  The meal was a pretty small portion, so again the Mom had a brilliant idea…

DAIRY QUEEN!  Since my transformation into being able to consume milk products, I had not ventured into a Dairy Queen and before that it was rare.  Why would I go to something with “dairy” in the title?  Exactly.  So, it was the perfect place to go last night and I’m so glad I got to share the experience with my mom.  Continuing with my 5 year old stance on life and embracing my inner id, I made my mom order for me!  She picked her favorite – the M&M Blizzard!

We didn’t wait very long before they called our number and we ran up to the counter guy like little kids.  He took our mini blizzards and turned them upside down to show how frozen they were.  I felt my eyes get big as I worried about all of that deliciousness falling to the floor, but no deliciousness was lost.  It all stayed perfectly frozen in the cup.  WOW!  Now that is impressive.

And boy was it frozen!  We went outside to eat our treats and crunched on the frozen candy (and yes there were some green M&M’s that were definitely not wasted despite their dreaded color) and cooled off in the late summer heat.  In fact, we both got a bit chilled.  And you know what?  While it froze my fingers and my taste buds, it melted my salad hating self and I think I will live to eat salad again.  Never underestimate the power of ice cream and comforting conversation from your mom.
 

Melting over the Melting Pot

For my birthday the husband and I decided to use a gift card to The Melting Pot.  (It has only been collecting dust for 2 years!) Because of all of my previous food allergies, I had never been to The Melting Pot let alone tried fondue.  Honestly, I was more than a little skeptical about fondue.  I mean I can shove meat on a stick, boil it in pot over the stove, and then dip it in some melted cheese all in my own kitchen.  So why would I pay (ok I wasn’t paying this time) so much money to do this in a restaurant?

Besides, fondue seems like something fancy rich people do or maybe goofy teenagers on TV.  Have you ever seen Glee? There is  a segment that the ditzy, but loveable Brittany does with her cat called “Fondue for Two.”  Basically it is spoof on TV shows that interview celebrities; they always have some disgusting looking fondue and scream the theme song “Fondue for Two” a couple of times.  I couldn’t get this song out of my head until we got to the restaurant. 

However, once we walked in the doors all the joking and preconceived notions melted away along with the name of the restaurant and yes, I experienced "the fondue effect." The manager greeted us and really introduced us to the concept of fondue.  He said that he had been with the company for 10 years and he even said it was an expensive place, but worth the experience.  He answered my above question without me having to ask: fondue isn’t so much about the food itself, but the experience.

And that is what my husband and I enjoyed: an eating experience.  Our waitress was extremely knowledgeable about the menu and helped us pick the items that were right for us.  We decided to splurge and order the four courseoption.  We started with the cheese fondue and chose spinach and artichoke.  We were given bread, apples, broccoli, and cheese to dip in the gooey pot of melted Fontina and Butterkäse cheeses, spinach, artichoke hearts and garlic.  I never thought that apples and cheese would pair well, but the combination of sweet apple and garlicky cheese was an experience itself: intriguing and delicious.

Next came the salad. We ordered the California Salad which consisted of mixed baby salad greens, Roma tomatoes, candied pecans and Gorgonzola cheese with Raspberry Black Walnut Vinaigrette.  I’m not a fan of Gogonzola cheese as it’s what I call a “stinky cheese” and tastes too strong for me; however, the vinaigrette completely made up for the stinky flavor.  It was a deep sweet flavor with a tiny kick of balsamic vinegar that made me curious for me.

 

 

 

Finally, the main course arrived.  The husband tried The French Quarter which had Cajun seasoned shrimp, chicken, Andouille sausage, and pork, while I ordered The Land and Sea which consisted of herb crusted chicken, sirloin, and shrimp.  The waitress recommended that we choose the Seasoned Court Bouillon as the broth to cook the meat.  Because the husband’s choice was so flavorful, we didn’t want something to overpower that flavor. And this was the real experience! The meat is served raw and you really do cook it in boiling broth. It sounds simple enough, but it is FUN!

 
Just when I thought it couldn't get any better, we ordered dessert! We ordered the s'mores - melted chocolate, marshmallows, and bits of graham crackers. I could have eaten it with a spoon, but they gave us strawberries, bananas, cheesecake, and marshmallows that only complimented the delicious sauce. (After we started cooking our meats, I completely forgot about taking pictures, so there are no pictures of our delicious dessert.)

After three hours of eating, I truly understand "the fondue effect!" And I truly appreciate a good eating experience.