Hi, I'm Andie.
I live near the Swiss Alps, in Bern, and I love not only melting cheese, but all kinds of Swiss cooking.
Switzerland’s favourite Christmas cookie, made by every bakery and every family.
(But none are as good as my mom's.)
The supermarkets in Switzerland are currently filled with these packages of Pfeffer, or marinated game. Often you can get them for a very good price, and pie is an exceedingly easy way to take advantage, especially if you don't have time to make all the parts of the Wild plate. Decorate the lid with some forest animals and you have a Jäger's, or Hunter's pie.
This onion tart is one of the traditional foods served at Bern's famous onion market.
Sii is a little like bread pudding, only with wine instead of milk. You soak the bread and dried fruit in wine overnight, then mix it together and warm it in some butter. I made two versions: one with Walliser white wine and apricots, and the traditional with red wine and raisins.
Appenzeller Toast (also known as Toast Williams) follows in the quick and easy 'Toast' tradition and features bacon and pears.
There is intense debate over where the cheese should be placed in the lineup. Some object to the cheese under the fruit and prefer a blanket of cheese covering the entire toast. Others argue that the juicy pineapple slice and appetizing red of the cherry should not be hidden under a mantel of cheese.
Usually it is a mistake to make someone's family recipe, and this was no exception.
A retro Swiss classic—pineapple, ham, processed cheese and a cherry on top.
According to the Oxford Companion to Beer, in 1890 there were 500 domestic breweries in Switzerland. By 1998, there were only about 24 breweries left.
So what happened?
In Swiss German the Aaschnitt, or end of the bread, is called something different in practically every region of the country. Regardless of what you call it, it makes great bread pudding.
Quince featured prominently in ancient times. The words for quince and apple were synonymous, and in some cases what was translated as apple may have actually been quince. Quince was probably the golden apple that Paris awarded to the most beautiful goddess, Aphrodite, and when the speedy Atalanta tried to outrun her suitors, the golden apples that Hippomenes used to slow her were also probably quinces.
These chestnuts, glazed with caramel, feature in the Wildteller.
(And they are excellent spooned over ice cream as well.)
Cabbage is an integral part of the Wild plate, as well as a great side dish at Christmas or Thanksgiving. This recipe produces a sweet and meaty cabbage that your intestines will hopefully be able to withstand.
I'm sure my mother never tired of my requests for spätzli when I was a child. She would boil them up and serve them warm, with a saucy, meaty stew.
Poached pears aren't just for dessert. On a Wildteller, they feature as one of the seasonal sides, with a daub of cranberry sauce in their center.
These buttery brassica are improved with ground almonds and a swirl of butter.
This Rehpfeffer, a kind of deer stew, has a secret ingredient: chocolate.
This marinade recipe comes from a Bernese cookbook from 1749. And it's for bear meat.
Wild is the German word for game (as in animals that you can hunt). Autumn is Wild season and restaurants all over Switzerland and central Europe prepare plates that feature game meats and traditional side dishes.
As far as I can tell, the Swiss Army is fuelled by Kambly biscuits and Käseschnitten.
