on Apr 23rd, 2008Food in the French Alps
My cyberfriend roadsofstone is back from a recent ski vacation in the French Alps, where he found fabulous spring conditions and, of course, fabulous food. He’s written about it in such glorious detail, complete with photos, that I suspect he’s a foodie at heart.
The tartiflette sounds and looks amazing; that’s his photo (please click to enlarge) I lifted. Think scalloped potatoes on overdrive, but the spuds are diced, not sliced, and most recipes include some form of meat, usually bacon or the more traditonal lardons. The star of the dish, though, is the Reblochon cheese and that’s the reason this dish was created not too long ago. In the 1980’s, a trade union came up with it to increase cheese sales. Gruyère can be used in its place and when the time comes, this is the recipe I’ll try.
Perhaps more appealing is the meal he had of thin-sliced beef, prepared at table with a grill that resembles a hibachi. It brings to mind some favorite meals in Switzerland, lingering over fondue bourguignonne with my best friend as we skewered chunks of sirloin and cooked them in the sizzling oil. It is the sort of leisurely dining we’ve all but abandoned, and that is our loss.
Roads is a wonderful writer and there’s much more in his post, Mountains of food - la cuisine Savoyarde. When he writes about his travels, or even a run through the English countryside, I feel as if I’m there. I think you will too.
Related on From Scratch: Letter from London
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My mother recently made a tartiflette for a client at their request, and now regrets it because they ask for it CONSTANTLY now. It’s like crack, from what I hear! Hee-hee. I should see if she’ll make one for me so I can finally test it out…either that, or break down and make one myself.
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Let me know what time to come over!
I’d have been all over that recipe but after 5 months of tons of snow on the ground, it was finally getting warm enough to melt and it was just too heavy to make. Come November, all bets are off.