Great Entertaining : Raclette Style

“Raclette … Whaaat?”

“Raclette” is derived from the French word for racler, meaning “to scrape.” Modern day raclette refers to a classic Swiss dish where cheese is melted under an electric broiler then scraped and topped on a wide variety of ingredients, traditionally roasted potatoes, cornichons (tiny pickles) and onions. My raclette machine has a granite top that – when heated – serves as a grill plus it has 8 removable toaster trays that rest under a broiler to cook the accompaniments, like melted cheese. Check out my suggested ingredients below! 

Raclette In Action

Going out on the town is always fun, but hosting small gatherings in your own home served with a stylish and unforgettable presentation of food makes for priceless memories and great times – that’s why entertaining is one of my passions! We love inviting friends and family over to enjoy fun and unique dining experiences enjoyed at home. Our raclette machine is always a big hit as the centerpiece of many fun indoor grilling gatherings.

Let’s watch a brief video of the racelette experience:

Why Raclette Will Make You A Hero

Like fondue, raclette is best enjoyed as a social eating experience. We like to jazz things up and make a big spread of all kinds of veggies, meats and seafood so our guests can get creative … and they do! The culinary combinations are entertaining, endless and delicious.

A Few Of Our Favorite Raclette Ingredients …

• Cheese: Fontina, Raclette, Gruyere, Provolone (any melting cheese!)
• Meats: Bacon, Prosciutto, Thinly-Sliced Filet Mignon, Shrimp, Lil’ Smokies
• Veggies: Asparagus, Sliced Bell Peppers, Fingerling Potatoes, Cherry Tomatoes, Mushrooms, Onions, Zucchini
• Sweets: Apples, Bananas, Pineapple
• Sidekicks: Butter, Olive Oil, Pesto, Olives, Bread, Mini Fillo Shells, Seasonings, Wine + Your Favorite Friends And Family

From sweet to savory – once you’ve gathered your ingredients let your inner foodie’s creativity guide your meal: Melted cheese and onion topped on prosciutto, apples with gooey cheese on top, grilled shrimp with bacon, and one self-proclaimed masterpiece we created called “bananas fauxster” – sliced bananas sprinkled with brown sugar, butter, Texas pecans and then toasted. The recipe for this sweet delight is below!

A Few More Raclette Tips

Since you cook-as-you-go when you raclette, it’s usually a fun process that can easily last an hour to several. We like to start with veggies and savory meats … take a break then have a delightful dismount with the sweets.

Mini Fillo/Phyllo Shells were one of my favorite unexpected discoveries. You can find them here in Austin in the freezer section at HEB. They require no defrosting; simply fill the cups with your favorite ingredients and toast them for a few minutes and you’ve made crispy, melty magic. One of my fillo favorites is to pour a bit of Fischer & Wieser Roasted Raspberry Chipotle Sauce into the cup then top with a  wedge of melting cheese. Place your dish in your toaster tray under the raclette grill’s lower level. When it toasts up, it’s a-ma-zing!

You’ll undoubtedly have leftover ingredients after the big meal. We tossed small potatoes, onions and veggies into our silicon egg rings, topped with eggs and cheese and made some delicious “omelettes raclette” – you can do this on the raclette itself or on stovetop (see pic below).

So now on to the “Bananas Fauxster” recipe! With origins to the 1950s in what has become a famed French Quarter restaurant “Brennans” Bananas Foster is a delicious ending to any fantastic meal. My raclette version (a.k.a. “fauxster”) adapts the original recipe for the raclette and it incorporates two of my favorite Texas ingredients: Texas Pecans and Pecan Street Rum, which is distilled outside Austin in Pflugerville.

Step 1: Place sliced bananas in your raclette tray and top with pieces of butter, some brown sugar and a sprinkling of chopped Texas pecans and a splash of the Pecan Street Rum. Place the grilling tray to the lower level of your raclette and let it toast-up 2-3 minutes or until bubbly brown.

Step 2: Transfer the bubbly banana mixture to a bowl or serve inside a fillo shell. You can also accompany the dessert alongside a scoop of vanilla ice cream for an extra decadent treat.

Ready To Raclette, Right ?!

If you’d like some suggestions for where to score your very own raclette magic, try these retailers:

Bed Bath & Beyond
Williams Sonoma

All this raclette talk has made me hungry so let’s get to grillin’. Enjoy!

~ Joe Paul Reider

Home Style Austin Founder
Austin Realtor®
Keller Williams Realty, Inc.
512-222-3302

❤ Love Food? In a click and a scroll you can visit more of my favorite recipes! There’s more than 50 of them here on the Home Style Austin blog!

Cupid Cups Recipe

❤ Valentine’s Day 2014 Featured Post ❤

A Treat For Your Sweetheart

This recipe puts a heart-inspired twist on our Signature Lemonberry Cups recipe. There’s no baking involved, so these Cupid Cups are super-easy to make and feature fresh heart-shaped strawberries right on top!

Foodie Tips:

  Making your strawberry hearts is surprisingly simple! Remove the crown (leaves) from the strawberry then slice the strawberry in half. Using a small heart-shaped pie cutter/cookie cutter center the cutter on the fruit then cut. Voilà!

  For an extra-special treat, we suggest using ChocoMaker Belgian Dark Chocolate Dessert Cups which will yield about 16 treats (they’re about twice as big as the fillo shells). If you prefer fillo, you can find the mini fillo shells in the freezer section of your local Austin HEB. Jars of lemon curd will most likely be waiting for you on a shelf by the jams and jellies.

  To decorate: You can easily tint the cheese pink by adding 4-5 drops of red food coloring. To dust, or not to dust – that is the question! We dusted with powdered sugar!

  For a quick way to get the mascarpone into the shells you can use or make your own piping bag. To make your own tube simply fill one end of a clean plastic or “Ziploc” bag with the mascarpone mix. Flatten and remove the air space above the icing and cut a small piece of the bag’s corner away. Holding the bag in your palm you can squeeze out the desired amount of mascarpone!

Ingredients: 

8 Ounce Container  |  Mascarpone, Sweet Italian Cream Cheese
4 Tablespoons  |  Lemon Curd
4 Tablespoons  |  Powdered Sugar
16-25  |  Chocolate Cups (shown) or Mini Fillo (Phyllo) Shells
To Garnish  |  Strawberries, Cut Into Hearts
To Dust  |  Powdered Sugar

What To Do:

1. In a medium-sized bowl blend well the Italian cream cheese, lemon curd and the powdered sugar.

2. On a serving plate arrange the empty shells/cups. Fill the cups with the cream cheese mixture and top each with strawberries or berries of your choosing. Raspberries and blackberries are a favorite, too!

3. Place the Cupid Cups in the refrigerator for a 30-minute chill before serving.

4. Before the tasty unveiling, give the Cupid Cups a light dusting of powered sugar. This step is optional but creates a pretty topping for the dessert.

Serve chilled and enjoy!

~ Joe Paul Reider

Home Style Austin Founder
Austin Realtor®
Keller Williams Realty, Inc.

❤ Love Valentine’s Day? Visit our post called “Valentine’s Day The Home Style Way” for our ideas for how to make your day extra special at home. We’re pairing our favorite appetizer, main course, desserts and wine along with some great “at-home” movie recommendations sure to melt hearts.

Lemonberry Cups Recipe

Field Of Berries

Watch your guests’ eyes grow wide when you present these Lemonberry Cups. There’s no baking involved so they are super-easy to make and feature fresh fruit atop Mascarpone Italian cream cheese. Served chilled, these delicious bite-sized treats make hot Texas days oh, so sweet and are a favorite any time of the year.

Ingredients: 

8 Ounce Container  |  Mascarpone, Sweet Italian Cream Cheese
4 Tablespoons  |  Lemon Curd
4 Tablespoons  |  Powdered Sugar
15-25 Miniature  |  Mini Fillo (Phyllo) Shells
To Garnish  |  Fresh Berries
To Dust  |  Powdered Sugar

What To Do:

1. In a medium-sized bowl blend well the Italian cream cheese, lemon curd and the powdered sugar.

2. On a serving plate arrange the empty fillo shells/cups. Fill the cups with the cream cheese mixture and top each with fresh berries of your choosing.

3. Place the Lemonberry Cups in the refrigerator for a 30-minute chill before serving.

4. Before the tasty unveiling, give the Lemonberry Cups a light dusting of powered sugar. This step is optional but creates a pretty topping for the fruit.

Serve chilled.

Foodie Tips:

  You can find the mini fillo shells in the freezer section of grocery stores like HEB and Kroger. No baking necessary! Jars of lemon curd will most likely be waiting for you on a shelf by the jams and jellies.

  Berries that work well for this recipe include raspberries, blackberries, blueberries and sliced strawberries.

  For a quick way to get the mascarpone into the shells you can use or make your own icing tube. To make your own tube simply fill one end of a clean plastic or “Ziploc” bag with the mascarpone mix. Flatten and remove the air space above the icing and cut a small piece of the bag’s corner away. Holding the bag in your palm you can squeeze out the desired amount of mascarpone!

  Hint: Red and blue-colored berries make a patriotic splash for Memorial Day, Fourth of July and Labor Day holidays. Use red and green fruits, like kiwi, for a tricolore taste symbolic of the Italian flag.

  On my next “go” of this recipe I’ll be adding a small shot of homemade limoncello to the mascarpone mixture for that extra “oompf!”

Enjoy!

~ Joe Paul Reider

Home Style Austin Founder
Austin Realtor®
Keller Williams Realty, Inc.