Tartiflette

Our annual skiing holiday is on my mind and skiing always makes me think of hot chocolate, armangnac and tartiflette, but not all at the same time please.  The exercise and gorgeously crisp fresh mountain air certainly develops the appetite and this is the perfect dish of satisfying comfort food.   Big on calories, but they'll be burnt off easily enough back on the piste.  There are so many versions of this recipe but I want to stick with Felicity Cloake's version, a food writer in the Guardian as she makes the cheese the star of the show.

Ingredients

1.3kg waxy potatoes, skin left on

2 tbsp butter

1 onion, thinly sliced

200g smoked bacon lardons

150ml dry white wine

200ml whipping cream

1 reblochon

1 clove of garlic

Method

Boil the potatoes in well-salted water until just tender to a fork, but not cooked right through. Drain well and leave to cool. Meanwhile, melt half the butter in a frying pan and saute the onions and bacon until the onions are soft and both are beginning to brown. Tip in the wine, bring to a simmer, and reduce to nearly nothing. Stir in the cream off the heat. Preheat the oven to 200C. Cut the potatoes into smallish cubes (roughly 1cm). Heat the remaining butter in a frying pan and saute them until golden. Cut the cheese in half horizontally. Rub an ovenproof dish with the cut clove of garlic, then cover the base with half the potatoes. Spoon over half the onion and bacon mixture and season well. Top with half the reblochon then repeat the layers, with the remaining reblochon half, rind uppermost, on top. Bake for 15 minutes until browned and bubbling (stick it under the grill for five more minutes if you want it really crisp), then serve with a green salad and a glass of dry white wine. Sante!

 Le Reblochon - the star of the show