Foodstuff: Raclette fête

A dear friend of mine is a hostess with the mostest and often throws fun, seasonally-appropriate parties in her perfectly petite cabin on the west side of Aspen. A late winter Wednesday brought an interactive twist to happy hour cocktails and bites.

In French, “scrape” translates to “racler”; the term “raclette” historically comes from Swiss shepherds and can mean either a style of cooking or a specific Swiss cheese. These working men would bring easy ingredients into the field, such as cheese and potatoes, and roast them over a fire before scraping the melty cheese over the warmed, starchy potatoes or other items, such as bread and pickled vegetables.

Today, you can replicate this tasty treat with a few easy ingredients and special equipment, specifically a raclette grill with a cast-iron top, meant to accompany sliced cheese. We used this grill type for our party, and I found one on the Swissmar website for $160. Alternatively, if you find faclette wheels of cheese, there’s a fancier melting machine, which melts the wheel diagonally, available by Boska at Williams Sonoma for $200. If you eat as much cheese as I do, the price per use of one of these grilling devices will likely pay for itself more quickly than I’d care to admit. I’d also posit that you never know what you’ll find at the Aspen Thrift Shop.

This feast, in the shadow of Shadow Mountain, was perfectly appropriate for mountainside dining. At the heart of it is the sliced cheese, available in block form at Whole Foods or any specialty cheese shop (Our industrious hostess likes to shop small, ordering from her favorite, Leelanau Cheese Co. in Michigan). We placed the cheese in the grill’s cheese drawers and threw halved baby potatoes, which had been par-roasted in advance, on the hot flat top, alongside sliced mushrooms. Crusty baguette, cornichons, Swiss-style sausage skewers, cured meats and house-made soft pretzels rounded out the extras. Guests let the cheese get bubbly and browned, then threw each gooey slice over the breads, meats, and vegetables. While advised by our Swiss-born cook in residence to use one slice of cheese, I (ever the over-doer) broiled two cheese pieces at a time. Don’t tell anyone.

Since buying cheese at the store doesn’t require much cooking, I’m including the recipe for pretzels our hostess whipped up before the party. Chewy and warm, they were an excellent add to our raclette festivities.

SOFT PRETZELS

Yields approximately 12 (3-inches across) pretzels
One package dry yeast, dissolved in 3/4c warm water (approximately 115°F)

1/2t salt

1t sugar

2c flour

One egg, yolk and white separated*

Coarse salt or seeds for topping**

Mix ingredients together.

Knead for approximately five minutes.

Shape and place on greased baking sheet.***

Brush with egg white.

Sprinkle with coarse salt or seeds.

Serve with mustard or cheese.

COOK’S NOTES

*Our hostess uses the entire egg.

**Sesame or poppy seeds would work well here.

***Shape right away or the dough dries out.

This Swiss soiree is a terrific idea if you want your guests standing up, mixing, and mingling. Creative cooks also threw buttered slices of banana bread in the grill for dessert at the party’s end. As the chalkboard sign by the door said, greeting party goers at our event, raclette ensures the “cheese factor HIGH” … and the vibes even higher.

Katherine Roberts is a mid-Valley based writer and marketing professional who is all about a cheesy good time. She can be reached via her marketing and communications firm, Carington Creative, at katherine@caringtoncreative.com