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| Fondue on the Menu |
Mystery author Tracee de Hahn is preparing to sail to
Europe this fall with her two Jack Russells…where her husband promises to be
waiting with new dog toys! Before she leaves, she’s stopping by to talk about
food in her books. Learn more about Tracee and her books at her website.
Food is important to daily
life but I don’t consciously think about it when I begin writing. Or at least I
didn’t think I did. Looking back, food….. and beverage if we’re being honest –
seep in. In my series set in Switzerland, Agnes Lüthi meets her difficult
mother-in-law halfway over food. In A
Well-Timed Murder, a baking frenzy is an indication of trouble ahead, while
at the same time sharing one of the warm loaves strike an accord between the
two women. A peanut allergy is also at the heart of A Well-Time Murder, which on reflection may say more about my
interest in food than I’d admitted to myself!
My husband is Swiss and we
lived there for several years, so I am familiar with the classic dishes of the
country. Rösti, spaetzli, and tarts prepared with leeks or rhubarb feature
prominently. And, of course, fondue. Food can say a great deal about a culture
and fondue is no exception. This classic melted cheese dish is a collective
endeavor with family and friends sitting around a shared pot. It speaks volumes
about the agrarian history of the Swiss, and the lives of small communities or
those living in high mountain pastures where cooking over an open fire, and dipping
into a shared pot, were a necessity (Switzerland also has a strong history of
soups).
The Swiss cow is famous
worldwide and it’s no wonder that fondue is, in essence, melted cheese. My
favorite is a half and half mix of two cheeses: Gruyeres and Vacherin. This
classic Moitié-Moitié (half and half) is rich and flavorful. A clove of garlic
is often wiped around the pot before melting the cheese and a dash of white
wine, kirsch or dry sherry is incorporated at the end. You may either dip a
cube of French bread into the pot or spoon the cheese over small boiled
potatoes. Either way, add a dash of pepper for a final touch. (Even my Swiss
husband agrees that American grocery stores now sell very good pre-packaged
fondue mixes in their dairy department. An easy way to sample without having to
do more than melt and serve.)
The typical accompaniment to
fondue includes dried meats and salami, cornichons, and pickles. You may serve
white wine, soft drinks or hot tea alongside the hot cheese, but never water,
as the water doesn’t mix well with fondue in the stomach. Save the water for an
hour afterwards! If you have room for dessert, try vanilla ice cream topped
with vin cuit (wine cooked down until it is a thick syrup and available in
specialty stores) and a crisp meringue.
Many American households
have fondue pots, particularly after the concentrated effort made by the Swiss
to market the product worldwide in the 1970s (all because of the Cheese
Mafia….. truly).
Currently I’m working on a
mystery set in Kentucky, where I grew up. A scan through my draft mentions the
Hot Brown (open faced sandwich with ham and turkey, topped by a sliced tomato,
cheese sauce and slices of bacon) and Kentucky Bourbon. I’ve taken my interest
in food to a new level, giving my heroine a distillery as part of her
inheritance!
Food and beverage not only
clue a reader (and writer) into location, but they illuminate the lives of the
characters. Are they silver and china or a leg of fried chicken wrapped in a
napkin, people? Do they drink hot chocolate topped by three inches of real
cream (and likely live in either Venice or Austria) or do they eye a bottle of
bourbon when the sun goes down?
Despite the heat of summer,
I think that later this week when we have a guest for dinner, he will find
fondue on the menu. I’ll call it a tribute to my Swiss husband, but really it’s
because now I think that would taste good!
Swiss-American police
officer Agnes Lüthi is on leave in Lausanne, Switzerland, recovering from
injuries she sustained in her last case, when an old colleague invites her to
the world’s premier watch and jewelry trade show at the grand Messe Basel
Exhibition Hall. Little does Agnes know, another friend of hers, Julien Vallotton,
is at the same trade show, and he’s looking for Agnes. Julien Vallotton was
friends with Guy Chavanon, a master of one of Switzerland’s oldest arts:
watchmaking. Chavanon died a week ago, and his daughter doesn’t believe his
death was accidental. Shortly before he died, Chavanon boasted that he’d
discovered a new technique that would revolutionize the watchmaking industry,
and she believes he may have been killed for it. Reluctantly, Agnes agrees to
investigate his death. But the world of Swiss watchmaking is guarded and
secretive, and before she realizes it, Agnes may be walking straight into the
path of a killer.
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