Raclette & Peach Melba Cocktails

The ingredients...

Ok, an easy one to start off with, and a double to boot!  Raclette followed by Peach Melba Cocktails.  I first discovered Raclette as a child, holidaying in Switzerland.  We had family out there, so it was a cheap holiday for us.  It was only later I would realise just what a privilege living or holidaying in Switzerland could be!

Raclette is named after the round cheese made in the Swiss alps.  I used to go to a restaurant on the edge of a glacier to watch the cheeses being cut in half and pushed up against what looked like a cage full of coals.  Wood was burned in niches in the wall which were fronted with decorative grilles against which the cheese could be melted.  Not actually touching the metal, but happily taking on the heat from the fire.

Our choice of cheese

The face of the cheese would be melted just enough before it was rushed to your table, tucked into the elbow of a waiter/chef who would scrape the molten goodness onto your plate over a mound of steaming potatoes.  You were told to drink tea with this meal as they thought the cheese would otherwise set in your stomach and make you ill.  Of course we now know a tad more about cheese and happily much on molten cheese with wine or beer.

In the modern European home Raclette has become something more elaborate if a little less magnificent in its move from coals to a small electric element in the middle of the table where you place trays of cheese or meats and sausages under the grill to cook.

Meats, cheese, pickles and olives waiting patiently

Ours was done a la Alsace - in deference to Mr FC's heritage - with a grand plate of meats and salamis, frankfurters, hard boiled eggs out of their shells.  With it we put a salad of onions and tomatoes dressed in olive oil, a bowl of boiled potatoes in their skins, and, of course, heaps of Raclette cheese from France, courtesy of FrenchClick.co.uk - an excellent online store providing the best of France to the UK.

Our usual accompaniments include Italian salami, German salami, Pepper salami and Bavarian ham along with a selection of mustards and pickles such as cornichons or sliced dill pickles and pickled beetroot.  The salad is made by thinly slicing tomatoes and covering them with finely chopped onion and fresh basil leaves.  Dress this with a very high quality olive oil, a touch of vinegar and a good sprinkling of freshly ground, black pepper.

The feast

The eggs are very simple - boil them in water for about 8 minutes once they come to the boil, then place under cold running water to cool.  When you can hold them without burning your fingers peel off the shell and put the whole egg into a bowl.  You can cut them in half for the look of things, but they're easier to transport to the plate from the bowl if they're intact.  I used a half a green pepper and a half a red pepper that were hanging around doing nothing to garnish the eggs, sausages and meats.  It not only looked pretty but it tasted good mixed in with the rest of it, too.

Buy good quality potatoes, be they new or as we used here, Maris Pipers which are fluffy and soft.  Boil them in water until soft.  Their arrival at the table is the start of the meal.  Also on the table is a dish of olives to nibble on while we waited for the potatoes to finish cooking, and some good red wine, French, of course.  We had a Cote du Rhone and a vin du Pays brought by our guests, both of which vanished just in time for dessert.

The 30 year old Raclette

The Raclette we used for the evening is something like 30 years old, given to Mr FC by his mother when she upgraded to a newer model.  It reminds him of his childhood.  The age came up in conversation when our French guest asked about the machine, she had never seen one such as this before.  There are plenty to buy on line these days, including top griddles, Pierrade stones and other delights.  Check out your local Amazon for a good selection.

I wish I could tell you that I was controlled enough to take photographs of our convivial evening, but I wasn't.  Like everyone else I was too busy with the food!  A good thing I took the pictures at the start of it all, really.

The potatoes to start the meal.  Mr FC couldn't find a smaller bowl...

Because the meal is really very filling dessert had to be something light, and preferably alcoholic!  Some time ago now a friend introduced me to her cocktail called Peaches and Cream.  To return the favour I introduced her to Chambourd liqueur - the black raspberry delight that the French make in round bottles with crowns.  It deserves its reputation as something special, it is pure raspberry flavour captured in a dark, purplish red liquid that belies its alcohol content.

For four of these cocktails I used a quantity of ice, about double that of the half 500ml tub of vanilla ice cream I was going to add, roughly 20cl of good vodka (Russian Standard Gold), a similar quantity of Archers  Peach Schnaps,maybe a little more.  The contents of two 400g tins of peaches in fruit juice, drained and the juice discarded, and 250ml or a half tub of really good quality vanilla ice cream, in this case I used Hagen Dazs.  The peaches are best bought in juice rather than syrup, you don't need and won't want the extra sugar.

4 glasses waiting and ready

This is a drink that can only be made by tasting.  What I used produced something full of flavour but not sweet, some like it sweeter - add more schnapps.  Some like it creamier - add more ice cream.  Some like it fruitier - add more peaches.  You get the gist?  The aim is to have something that tastes strongly of peaches and cream without being sickly or overwhelming, that's cold and slushy without being completely frozen, and that you can't really taste alcohol in.  The last thing you want in pudding is a really strong taste of alcohol.  Well, I don't, anyway!

Half tubs are easy with good knives.

Blitz the whole lot in a blender or food processor until smooth and then taste it.  If you like what you've got then it's time to pour it out.  4 large cocktail glasses, 4 spoon straws, and about 5mm of of Chambord goes into the bottom of the glass.  Slide the peach mixture down the side of the glass so it doesn't mix into the Chambord too much, leaving it layered.

Ready to blend

Normally I serve this with a Maraschino cherry on the straw, too, just for a bit of an extra twist.  However, in deference to a guest who hates cherries in all their forms this time I left it out.  Ok, so I ate one in the kitchen while I was making it.  A girl has her limits, you know!

Mixed and ready to pour

Our guests were quick to pounce on the cocktails and stir in the raspberry from the bottom, adding a pink tinge to the yellow mixture.  Pronounced delicious they tucked in until one of them realised the effect it was having and that if he carried on slurping it down at that rate he wouldn't be getting up out of his chair at the end of the meal so much as slithering to the floor.

Chambord black raspberry liqueur

I don't condone drunken-ness, but the occasional numb lip and slight wobbliness is ok so long as you're not driving, which none of us were.  And this was *very* occasional since I can no longer really drink at all.  Remember - drink responsibly!  /end of public service announcement.

Here's to pudding!

Sipped a little slower through the straws we remained capable of conversation and enjoyed watching the cats chasing each other in and out of the garden.  Oh, that's something else about Raclette - the room gets very hot!  We had ours in the conservatory where we could open the doors to the garden and keep comfortably cool.

The empties

Enjoy!

Mr & Mrs FC


Our thanks to Doug and Marie who joined us for dinner and were most complimentary, thank you also for the excellent wine they provided!  We hope to be able to host you again soon.

Raclette  (printable version)

200g per person of Raclette cheese - or other cheese of your choice, cut into slices about 4mm thick.
A selection of hams, salamis and other cooked meats as you wish
A selection of cooked sausages such as Frankfurters, Nurembergers, Kabanos, Bratwurst, etc.
Mustards - I recommend Dijon, wholegrain Dijon and English for a good selection
Pickles such as cornichons, onions and beetroot or others as wished
Up to 2 hard boiled eggs per person
A couple of tomatoes per person
1 onion - in the UK we just call these onions, but they're the ones in golden skins, variously known as white or yellow onions
Olive oil
White vinegar of your choice
Fresh basil leaves, chopped

A selection of olives 

Red and green peppers, thinly sliced, to garnish

Method:
If possible make the salad about an hour beforehand to allow it to blend the flavours together.  Thinly slice the tomatoes and spread them on a plate.  Cover them with the chopped onion and dress with the best quality olive oil you can afford and a touch of white vinegar, either white wine or cider vinegar will do.  Grind over some fresh, black pepper and top with the chopped basil.  Cover and refrigerate until ready.

Bring a pan of water to the boil and add the eggs, boiling them for about 8 minutes to ensure the centres are hard.  Put the pan under running water when the time is up and keep the tap running into the bowl.  This will cool the eggs quicker and also prevent that nasty black line round the yolk that can occur if they cool too slowly.  When you can comfortably pick up the eggs without burning your hands peel the eggs and put them in a bowl.

If using the peppers, core them and remove the seeds before slicing them thinly.  These can be sprinkled liberally where you wish to add colour.

Before your guests arrive, drain the pickles and olives and put into bowls for the table.  Plug in your Raclette and pre-heat the element so your guests don't have to wait longer for their first melted cheese.

When your guests arrive put a pan of water on to boil.  Add to it your potatoes, washed and in their skins, and boil until they are soft when tested with a fork.

Lay out the cheeses and meats on plates or in bowls, with the sausages cut to the size of your Raclette dishes so that they will fit under the grill, or leave them whole if you're lucky enough to have a griddle on the top of your Raclette.

Dress the table with mustards and the pickles, the plates of meat and cheese, uncovered salads, eggs and any other accompaniments you may wish, and finish with the potatoes, which is the signal to start eating.

Melt the Raclette cheese and brown the sausages under the grill - the peppers can be put into the little dishes, too.  The cheese can be poured over the potato or poured onto the plate or anything else as you wish.



Peach Melba Cocktails (printable version)

Serves 4

Ice up to the 500ml mark on a blender jug, or use an empty ice cream tub to measure out twice as much as the ice cream you will use
20cl good quality vodka
25cl peach schnapps
2 x 400g tins peach slices in fruit juice, drained and the juice discarded
250ml good quality vanilla ice cream
10 cl Chambord

Maraschino cherry - optional 

To serve:
4 tall cocktail glasses
4 spoon straws

Put all the ingredients except the cherry and the Chambord into a blender or food processor jug and blitz until smooth.  Have a taste of the mixture and see if it is balanced to your palate, and adjust accordingly.

Pour about 2.5ml Chambord into the bottom of each glass, careful not to splash it up the sides.  Side the peach mixture down the side of the glass on top of the raspberry so that they remain layered, remembering to share the mixture out evenly between the four glasses.  If using the cherries push one over the end of the straw and slide it down about 5 or 6cm.

Serve immediately.