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Hello and welcome to another episode of Family Tree Food and Stories.

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I'm your co host, Nancy May.

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And today, we're turning up the heat on February.

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With a show that's all about the letter F.

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Food, family, fondue, and yes, a few fiascos.

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Why all the Fs, you ask?

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Well, it's February.

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And the second month of the year always seems to fly by faster than we'd like.

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Oops!

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Three more Fs!

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Anyway, Sylvie and I couldn't think of a better way to celebrate the

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final week of February, and yes, two more Fs, than with stories that bring

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together food, family, and a few flops, with food that starts with the

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letter F. this one is about fondue.

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So, grab your fondue forks and get comfy as I dive into this rich and cheesy

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story with a few traditions and yes, a mishap, off fixing up things for our March

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episodes of Family Tree Food and Stories.

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The First Fondue

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Fondue has always been a family fixture in our house.

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So much so that my parents were practically famous for it, but

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let me tell you how it all began.

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It was one frosty February evening in New York when my parents stumbled upon

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their first fondue setd to their good friends Hank and Catchy Childs, who had

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a flair for unforgettable introductions.

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who had a flair for unforgetable introductions

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In fact, they were the ones who introduced Mom and Dad.

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That night, the Swiss Embassy was filled with a heavy aroma of melting cheese.

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My parents, curious and adventurous as always, decided to give the fondue a try.

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One bite, and they were hooked.

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Or should I say, nabbed like a mouse in a trap.

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But by the end of the evening, Dad had befriended the chef.

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And mom was asking for the recipe.

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before leaving the event, they found the perfect, and yes, original, Swiss

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fondue set at the Embassy Gift Shop.

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That set, with hand painted images of boys and girls on each plate, became the

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centerpiece of many family gatherings, Christmas Eve dinners, And gatherings

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with really close friends and family members often had them bringing out that

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fondue set with a twinkle in their eye.

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At every cheesy meal, I remembered how my sister and I would carefully

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try to keep track of those forks, There was always a little colored

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tip at the end, so you could tell.

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Which fork belonged to who?

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And as a piece of bread fell off someone's fork, into the pot, well,

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the punishment was really a sweet one.

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You had to kiss the person sitting next to you.

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It was a perfect blend of family, food, fun, and friends.

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Over the years, that original fondue set began to crack and eventually did break.

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My mom was heartbroken each time a piece was broken because it kind of felt like

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losing a little part of our special family moments together, and yes, our traditions.

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But the memories that that set created, oh they still live with us today.

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Fondue for us has never been just about food.

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It's about the laughter, the stories, the connections that are made around

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the table of bubbling hot cheese.

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It was a tradition that my mom and dad created for our family.

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One that brought us closer and always made us laugh.

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One, lost piece of bread at the bottom of the fondue pot at a time.

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And by the way, if you have never had fondue, the cherished Piece of

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gold at the end of the pot is that gooey crust right at the bottom

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when all that cheese is gone.

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Before I continue, I'm going to take a little break to show you how you can find

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ways to create your own family traditions.

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Or remember the ones that you've got and make sure that they

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continue through the generations.

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Now let's get back to how Bob and I are carrying on that tradition.

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When Bob and I got married, we knew we had to carry on that tradition of fondue.

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We had many meals together with mom and dad over that cheesy gooey delight.

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And it took a lot of hunting, but we eventually found our

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fondue pot at a little specialty shop in Darien, Connecticut.

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From then on, fondue became a signature winter dish for our New Year's Eve

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and many other times spent around our dining table, with close friends.

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Every time we brought that pot out, the stories flowed, as freely as the wine.

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Conversations would bounce across the table alongside forks filled

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with cheese, shrimp, and even dessert fruit dipped into chocolate.

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Fondue isn't just a meal.

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It really is an experience.

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A way of bringing people together and creating memories that just

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stick with you over the years.

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Now, speaking of wine, let me tell you about one special memorable fondue night

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with our dear friends Mary and Marc.

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I call this one the Magic Reappearing or Disappearing Bottle of Wine.

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One cold evening in February, we decided to To try a new fondue restaurant in town.

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We had high hopes, not just for the food, but for the stories and

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the laughter that always ensue after having fondue with friends.

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Unfortunately, the fondue at this restaurant was quite the letdown.

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The cheese was bland and watery, and I've never had such a bland taste of a pot of

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anything before, in addition, the portions were small, and the wine we ordered

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was, eh, rather mediocre and certainly overpriced for what we were getting.

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still, we were determined to have a great evening with our dear friends.

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After all.

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It was fondue, and even a bad batch with good friends is enjoyable.

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the four of us soon polished off that bottle of wine, and yes,

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the pot of fondue, but we really didn't want to order anything more.

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However, we also didn't want the evening to end.

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but Bob, ever the problem solver, had a spark of inspiration.

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I've got more wine in the car, he said.

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You see, Bob had been making homemade wine in our garage.

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For while now.

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And he'd brought a few bottles to give to our friends.

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So, out to the car.

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He and Marc went, braving the cold, to retrieve one of Bob's

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perfect poodle, Pinot Noir.

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Named after our poodle, Pearl.

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But how do you sneak a bottle of wine that's been in your car into a restaurant?

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That's where Marc's trench coat came in handy.

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before leaving the table, they slid that empty bottle of wine into Marc's

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coat, Then returned to the car to fill it with Bob's Homemade Brew.

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Using the Westport News as a funnel, They poured that wine into

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the empty bottle, And snuck it quietly back onto our dining table.

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And we toasted to our friends with our new, And yes, more delicious bottle

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of wine, while trying to contain our laughter while our waitress lifted

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and looked at the bottle half empty and continued to ask somewhat puzzled

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if we wanted to order another one.

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the third trip to the car.

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Bob and Marc could barely keep a straight face.

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Passersby must have thought they were doing something rather shady or sexual,

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running back and forth to the trunk of the car in a dimly lit parking lot.

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That night, we might not have had great fondue, but the

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four of us still to this day.

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Laugh till our sides ache about that evening.

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of course, not every fondue story is smooth and delicious.

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Take my Aunt Pat, for example.

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She was known as a great cook and had a reputation for fabulously wild, fun

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dinner parties, always hosting with a flair to support her husband's career.

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My Uncle Nate.

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One year while living in Sydney, Australia, she decided to host a

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fondue party to impress Nate's boss.

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She set the table beautifully, beautifully.

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Opened the windows to let the evening breeze in, but shortly after setting the

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fondue pot on the table, disaster struck.

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A gust of wind caught the edge of the curtains, and suddenly

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there was a lot more than toasting bubbling cheese in that dining room.

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thankfully they were able to put that fire out quickly.

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With only a charred curtain as evidence of the evening's unexpected flambé.

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The fondue, however, was saved, and Pat's dinner party was a memorable success.

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It also cemented my aunt's reputation as a hostess who could handle

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literally anything unexpected.

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Fondue.

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Yes.

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The letter F. Family, fun, friends, and fondue.

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The letter F. Hmm, it certainly is one that brings about memories and stories.

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Fondue is a great way to wrap up February if you haven't tried cheese, meat, fish,

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or dessert fondue yet, it's worth it.

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Will inevitably be one that will produce some sort of interesting

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or at least memorable stories worth sharing for years to come.

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I guarantee that any find de you create and serve with family and friends.

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will result in fabulous stories, fonder friendships, and maybe even a few faux

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pas, but hopefully not fires, that will be talked about for years to come.

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If you've never made a fondue and want to know how to do so, I placed a link

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in the show notes to a PDF that gives you exact directions on how to do so.

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At least one of our favorite recipes.

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Sadly, this story comes to an end, and it's time for this group of

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February episodes to come to a close.

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Sylvia and I hope that we're inspiring you to test, create, and

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try new traditions of your own.

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ones that will give you stories to talk about for years to come.

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While doing so, please take a moment to follow, share, and rate this show.

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Doing so will help us create a family sized helping for more episodes

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of Family Tree Food and Stories.

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Until next week, dig into some new treats, some new stories,

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some new traditions, and memories.

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And ciao.

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Bye bye.