If you’re wondering what to dip in your cheese fondue, we recommend trying radishes, endive leaves, rainbow carrots, or small crostini. Whatever you choose, you want something crunchy that will take your gooey cheese fondue experience to the next level. Also, once you’re done with the cheese fun, you can enjoy your squash vessel as an extra treat.

To get a cheese pull, bake the cheese in the squash until you get 140-150°F on an instant-read thermometer. Also, when you melt the cheese, don’t increase the heat, as it won’t speed up the process. Simply keep an eye on it and stop adding cheese when you see the mixture is about to break. Remove it from the heat, blend with an immersion blender until you get a smooth texture, and return it to low heat. Then, continue adding more cheese. It’s a good idea not to prepare the squash more than three hours in advance.

Ingredients

• 4 medium acorn squash
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more to taste
• 8 ounces Comté cheese, grated (about 2 cups)
• 8 ounces Gruyère cheese, grated (about 2 cups)
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1 3/4 cups heavy cream
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 1 tablespoon dry white vino
• 1 garlic clove, finely grated
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, plus more to taste
• Crudités of choice, sliced apples, pretzel crisps, and more, for serving

Directions

1. Start by preheating the oven to 500°F. Make a flat base on the bottom of each squash by trimming off about 1 inch from the top and about 1/4 inch from the bottom of each squash. Hollow out the squash and get rid of any seeds and stringy bits. Drizzle olive oil on the insides and sprinkle with salt.
2. Place the squash on parchment paper upside down and roast in the oven until the flesh is slightly tender but still in proper shape. Then, remove from the oven and turn the squash upright. Let it cool for 15 minutes and reduce temperature to 450°F.
3. Combine the cheese and flour and set aside. Let the heavy cream simmer over medium heat. Whisk often until the texture gets slightly thickened and reduced by half. Add milk, kirsch, garlic, and pepper. Reduce heat to low. Then, start adding about ¼ cup of the flour-coated cheese at a time, whisking constantly. Once your cheese is fully melted, you can season it with salt and pepper.
4. Carefully pour the fondue into the squash cavities, but don’t fill them to the top. Bake at 450°F for about 12-15 minutes. Serve hot with crudités and additional sides.

Having a garage is convenient. It provides covered parking for your vehicles and also additional storage space outside your main living areas. However, many garages are often used as dumping grounds for items that cannot be stored elsewhere. It’s also way too easy to let garage clutter build up until lawn equipment, leftover project materials, and sports equipment take over. Here are some items that can be immediately purged.

1. Old Pieces of Fitness and Sports Equipment

The most common causes of garage clutter are pieces of sports and fitness equipment. Maybe it’s time to get rid of those old bats, bikes, dumbbells, rackets, and other pieces of equipment if they are only gathering dust in your garage. One thing you can do is donate them to a community recreation center or any kind of charitable organization that accepts sports equipment.

2. Worn-Out Landscaping Tools

Maybe it’s time to get rid of that rusty shovel, dripping garden house, or malfunctioning lawnmower. You should be honest about what can be repaired, replaced, or needs to go in the trash pile when deciding what to do with such tools that are not frequently used. As a general rule, you can dispose of the old tool if you have already replaced it with a new one. Consider giving any working tools to a charity, community garden, or educational institution.

3. Damaged Holiday Decorations

Holiday decorations are only displayed for a few months. However, there is no need to keep hold of damaged light strings, leaky lawn inflatables, and more. The best option for getting rid of them is to donate them. Before throwing something in the trash, you can call your local recycling center to see if the stuff can be recycled.

4. Old Pieces of Furniture Kept in the Garage

Older pieces of furniture that you no longer have room for might be relegated to the garage as you update your living space with new ones. Be proactive about selling or donating that chair or dresser rather than letting it sit around unused. You can also ask a family member to keep the item if it is a family heirloom and you want to keep it until you free up more storage space elsewhere.

5. Leftover Construction Materials

Purchasing extra construction materials for your project is a good practice. However, if you are still keeping extra materials after a few years, you might want to think about whether there is something you want to store in your garage, other than materials that you might not use. Construction companies are always interested in donated building materials.

6. Kids’ Toys That Are No Longer Used

The toys your children have left behind can surely take up valuable space in your garage. Whether your kids have grown up or they are no longer interested in them, one thing you can do is place anything you want to keep in bins and decide which toys can be donated, given to another family, or even sold. Unfortunately, some toys can be difficult to be recycled because they often contain a wide range of materials and parts that are not easily separated.