The Road Less Traveled

Ingredients:

½ Cup softened Cream cheese, cut into cubes
½ Cup grated Asiago cheese
½ Cup Romano cheese
1 Tbsp butter
½ Cup Half- and- Half cream
½ Can Cream of Mushroom soup
2 Cloves of minced Garlic
2 Tbsp minced Green onion, or sweet onions
2 Tbsp fresh lime, or lemon, juice
1 Tbsp Flour
1 Cup of dry White Wine
½ Cup fresh wild Mushrooms (Optional)
1 Tbsp fresh Chives, or fresh Parsley (Optional)
1 Tbsp fresh Lemon Thyme (Optional)

Directions:

In a bowl beat together softened cream cheese, 1/4 cup of cream, and 1/2 cup of the cream of mushroom soup until smooth. Coat Asiago and Romano cheese with flour; Set aside both mixtures. In a large double saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add green onions, garlic, and mushrooms; Saute until soft but not browned. Add white wine and lime, or lemon, juice; simmer together. Stir in remaining ¼ cup of cream; cook until hot but not boiling; Simmer. Add cream cheese mixture in small amounts to saucepan, whisking constantly until melted. Whisk and melt in the flour-cheese mixture until melted. Remove from heat. Stir in herbs, optional. Transfer to your fondue pot, or warmer and serve immediately.

Condiments:

Serve with an assortment of bread cubes, cooked, crisp vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, and asparagus, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, and fresh slices of peppers.

Achieving a delicious and flaky pastry for your pies is one of the most difficult tasks for any baker, novice or experienced. Here is a unique recipe made a little differently from the average pastry ingredient. The key is in the cream cheese and pure butter. The key is in leaving pea sized butter within the dough for this is what creates the flaky nature of the pastry. Additionally, the cream cheese added to this pastry dough makes for an extremely original flaky- pie crust. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
2 sticks cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1/8 Tsp salt
1 package cold cream cheese
1½ Tbsp ice water
1 Tsp brown sugar

Directions:
Combine all the dry ingredients how you choose to do it within your kitchen: By hand in a bowl, or a food processor. Mix and blend with butter and cream cheese until a course meal. Add water last, a little at a time. The pastry dough is ready when it sticks together between your fingers. If it does not, continue to add water up to 6 tablespoons. The butter and cream cheese should not blend completely into the dough mixture; rather, leave small pea size pieces within the pastry dough. Do not over knead or overwork your pastry, or it will become tough. Chill pastry dough for at least an hour before baking.