Cherry Cheesecake Fondue

Ingredients:

• 125 ml (1/2 cup) milk
• 250 g Philadelphia cream cheese, softened
• 125 ml (1/2 cup) granulated sugar
• 540 ml store-bought cherry pie filling (we used E.D. Smith)
• zest of 1/2 lemon
• 15 ml (1 tbsp) fresh lemon juice
• 10 ml (2 tsp) almond extract
• 2.5 ml (1/2 tsp) vanilla extract
• pinch of salt

For grilling and dipping

• Homemade mini pancakes or store-bought pancakes, cut into pieces
• Store-bought waffles, cut into pieces
• Sponge cake cubes
• Mini donuts
• Biscoff or Speculoos cookies
• Strawberries
• Raspberries
• Blackberries
• Toasted almonds

Preparation

• In the microwave, soften the cream cheese for about 2 minutes.
• In a heavy-bottom saucepan, combine the cherry pie filling, softened cream cheese, milk, and sugar. Heat over low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture just begins to bubble.
• Stir in the lemon zest, lemon juice, almond extract, vanilla extract, and salt.
• The fondue should coat the back of a spoon. Adjust the consistency with a little extra milk, if needed.
• Transfer to the Dip and Grill insert and keep warm.

Helpful tips:

• To make service easier, you can pre-cook the mini pancakes in a skillet and simply reheat them on the grill using the lowest setting.
• If the fondue thickens too much during service, gently stir in a little warm milk.
• For a Black Forest twist, stir in chocolate chips just before transferring the fondue to the ceramic insert.
• You can also make your own cherry topping using frozen cherries, sugar, lemon juice, and cornstarch for an even more intensely fruity result.