Fondue for Valentines Day!

Hello, my name is Sig and I am a fondue junkie. 
I LOVE it!  Birthday's, Anniversaries, or any other special occasion usually finds us at the Melting Pot.  There is just something about having a delicious meal over a span of several hours.  I wanted to find a way to do the entire Melting Pot meal at home so I could share it with my kiddos, and guess what, I did! So now, every year for Valentine's Day, we have Fondue Night.  The kiddos have SO MUCH FUN and we still get to have an amazing meal.  We even make up "rules" like if you drop your food in the fondue, you have to give the person on your left a kiss.  This night is always filled with many laughs and memories!
The meal at the Melting Pot starts with the cheese course.  Since I am not big on the "traditional" Swiss Cheese version of cheese fondue, we always order the Fiesta Cheese Fondue.  So, here is my Copy Cat version.  Stay tuned the rest of the week for a Coq au Vin Fondue recipe with a Variety of Dipping Sauces, and of course, the ever important ULTIMATE Chocolate Fondue!

Fiesta Cheese Fondue

• 2 cups of shredded cheese. Your choice...you can do a mixture of Cheddar and Monterey Jack, some Colby Jack, or if you are feeling especially sassy, throw in some Pepper Jack.
• 1 TBSP flour
• Bottle of Mexican Beer. Corona works great.
• 2-3 TBSP salsa or pico de gillo, as hot as you would like it.
• 1/2-1 TBSP chopped jalapenos (optional, if you like some extra oompf)

Take your shredded cheese and add a heaping TBSP of flour, get all your cheese coated. In a double boiler (or in my case, a glass or metal bowl over a pot of simmering water) start by pouring 1/2 bottle of beer. Once that comes to a simmer, add your cheese and stir constantly. Watch your heat so you don't get that funky cheese separation thing, don't allow your cheese to simmer. Add in a couple TBSP of salsa or pico, optional jalapenos, and viola! You may need to play with the cheese/beer/salsa ratio to get the right consistency. I usually start with 1/2 of the cheese and keep adding until it is thick enough to stay on a chip, but thin enough to not break the chip.
When ready to serve, I place it into my dessert fondue pot that is simply warmed with a candle or my mini crock pot.  You simply want to keep it mildly warm.

And here is the cast of characters who like to take a little dip in the hot tub of gooey cheese deliciousness:
Tortilla chips, Granny Smith apple chunks, carrot bites, celery bites, cauliflower bites, and a variety of cubed bread.

This recipe has been linked up to:
Frou Frou Decor
Tidy Mom
Simply Sweet Home
Mommy's Kitchen