Easy Recipes: cooking with French cheeses
When my sister and myself stay at my parents’ house in the Basque country we usually take turn cooking the lunch or diner meal. We are all crazy about great cuisine and cooking in the family so there is always a new dish we learn from each other. Cooking in my mother’s kitchen is always a very happy moment her kitchen is large with a gorgeous view on the garden, the flowers, the pine trees..plenty of counter and room to chopp, cook….this is the place where I am truly happy.
One day when my sister Martine and myself were stying at my parent’s house during Winter break.
My sister decided to share with us a delicious very easy recipe from the French Alps she had tasted a few weeks before at a friend’s diner in Paris. I remember how I laughed when I heard the name of this dish the first time : TARTIFLETTE. This is such a cute name in French.
This dish is from the Haute Savoie, French Alps mountains. This is a very easy comfort food dish to make.
I always have in my fridge Cubetti Pancettas, Raclette cheese and Creme Fraiche from Trader Joe’s ( Thank you TJ’s now the raclette cheese is sliced). So when I want to make something fast and comforting I make my Sister’s Tartiflette.
Each time I make this dish I think of her.
Tartiflette (potato pancetta cheese dish)
4 medium potatoes peeled and cubed
1( 4 –oz) pkg Cubetti Pancetta (pancetta mini cubes)
1 large onion, diced
2 tablespoons creme fraiche
1 (8 ounce) raclette cheese
salt and ground black pepper to taste
2 Tbsp olive oil + 1 tsp extra to grease the dish
Grease with olive oil a 9-inc baking dish. (or you can use 2 5-inch ramekin)
Bring a large pot of cold salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the potatoes and cook until tender, about 10-15 minutes. Drain well.
Preheat an oven to 400 degrees F.
In a large saucepan over medium heat sauté onion in olive oil until tender and translucent. Set aside and place in a bowl. In the same saucepan add Pancetta cubes and cook for about 5-7 minutes . Remove from heat; Drain and discard fat. Set aside.
In large bowl mix onion ,potatoes, crème fraiche, salt and pepper.
Place 1/2 of the potatoes mixture into the baking dish; then add 1/2 of the pancetta mixture over it. Layer in the remaining potatoes mixture, and rest of the Pancetta cubes.
Layer the Raclette cheese slices evenly over the top of the baking dish.
Bake in the preheated oven until cheese is melted and a bit brown, about 10 minutes. Serve hot with a Mache ( lamb lettuce)–walnut salad.
Bon Appetit!
Judy Grogan
I love potatoes and cheese…combining them is just heaven!