Stirring the Pot

Sisters Katie McClure and Erin Breen ring in the New Year with a Texas twist on a Swiss tradition

- BETSY CRIBB

THEY SAY EVERYTHING is bigger in the Lone Star State, but when it comes to New Year's Eve, the Houston-based duo behind the lifestyle brand Mirth play it more low-key. "I'm embarrassed to admit that the party doesn't always make it till midnight, confesses Katie McClure, who hosts a fondue dinner with her sister, Erin Breen, every December. But that's just the way they like it.

"It's not a huge shindig," says McClure of the gathering. "We're casual people. This isn't a formal, overly planned event but still feels special because it's something different and fun." McClure lived in Switzerland for a couple of years and fell in love with the country's fondue tradition. "It's a very interactive way of eating and makes the meal last awhile," she says. "Dinner isn't over in just two seconds." There is also a family element melded into fondue that feels just as Southern as it does Swiss: Everyone has their own cherished recipe and unique way of preparing the dish. "That's how your grandmother and your mother made it, so that's how you do it," says McClure.