Fonduta valdostana
Valle d'Aosta's warm Fontina cream
The first spoonful of fonduta valdostana should fall in a slow, glossy ribbon. Fontina gives the cream its gentle but unmistakable flavor, and toasted bread is nearly all it needs beside it. A small bowl feels more generous than its short ingredient list suggests.
This is the valley's fonduta: Fontina DOP, whole milk, butter, and egg yolks. There is no wine to sharpen it and no mixed-cheese blend to mask the Fontina. The cheese spends time in milk, then slowly gives up its elasticity over a water bath. The yolks turn that first stretchy mass into something smooth and spoonable.
Ingredients
For the fonduta
- 400 g(about 14 oz)Fontina DOP, rind removed, thinly sliced (see note)
- 200 ml (scant 1 cup), plus a little more if neededwhole milk, enough to just cover the cheese during soaking
- 30 g(about 2 tbsp)unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
- 4large egg yolks
- freshly ground white pepper, to taste
- fine salt, only if needed
To serve
- 250 gcrusty bread, preferably country or rye bread, toasted and cut into dipping pieces
Kitchen notes
- Fontina DOP
- Look for the protected Italian Fontina DOP from Valle d'Aosta, usually sold at a specialty Italian market or a well-stocked cheese counter. Generic domestic 'fontina' may be milder or differently textured; another Alpine melting cheese would produce a different fonduta. The cheese is the identity of this dish, so do not swap it.
- Warm service
- A fonduta pot with gentle heat keeps the cream fluid at the table. Warm individual bowls work well for a small batch; serve immediately and avoid a hot flame, which can separate the cheese and overcook the yolks.
Method
Soak the Fontina
- Put the sliced Fontina in a narrow bowl and pour over the milk; it should just cover the cheese. Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight. Set a fine sieve over a bowl, drain the cheese, and keep every drop of the soaking milk.
Melt gently
- Bring a few centimeters of water in a saucepan to a bare simmer. Set a heatproof bowl over it without letting the bowl touch the water. Add the drained Fontina and butter and stir steadily with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula. At first the cheese may gather into a stretchy mass; keep stirring over the gentle heat until it loosens into a smooth, thick cream, about 10–15 minutes. If the water boils hard, lift the bowl off briefly and lower the heat.
Enrich and serve
- Add the yolks one at a time, stirring each in completely before adding the next. Continue stirring over the barely simmering water for 3–5 minutes, until the fonduta is glossy, thick, and falls from the spoon in a ribbon without separating. Add the reserved milk a tablespoon at a time only if needed for a soft, spoonable consistency; do not thin it into a sauce. Taste before adding any salt, then season with white pepper. Transfer to warm bowls and serve at once with the toasted bread.