Kyrielle ~ Tartiflette

English: Reblochon is a French cow’s-milk labelled Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) cheese, made in the Alps region of Haute-Savoie and Savoie.

He can get but one Reblochon,
(I’d better not go on and on),
We really need two. But you know
How it is, I must adapt so …

An extra recipe, I read,
So our guests won’t be underfed (!)
He can get but one Reblochon
And we really need at least two.

He can get but one Reblochon
And we really need at least two
A hasty casserole will fill
Up the hole. Inspiration, phew!

An evening of expectation,
Thank goodness for inspiration.
He could get but one Reblochon
And we really need at least two.

Casserole (Photo credit: el_floz)

Tartiflette, a french dish with a cheese named Reblochon. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

According to Catherine Wilson, writing in 2003, ‘The Kyrielle was once a very popular poetic form originating in France and dating back to the Middle Ages. In this poetry form, couplets are often paired in quatrains and are characterised by a refrain that is sometimes a single word and sometimes the full second line of the couplet or the full fourth line of the quatrain. Each line within the poem consists of only eight syllables. There is no limit to the number of stanzas a Kyrielle may have, but three is considered the accepted minimum.The name kyrielle derives from the Kýrie. Gay Reiser Cannon at dVerse poets agrees with this description and sums it up in this way:

‘So to sum up:

1. the form can be written a number of ways usually as a quatrain.
2. the form ends in a refrain which is repeated as the last line or after every stanza.
3. the lines should be written in tetrameter (in iambs or trochees) or a count of eight syllables.
4. the original form addressed spiritual topics but that usage has somewhat disappeared.’ (dVerse FormForAll, December, 2012)

And now for something completely different …

… at least from me, on my blog.  Maybe you’d like to try out some of my favourite recipes?  To test the water, as it were, I’m blogging one of our family favourites today.  Tartiflette is great with a green salad and chunky slices of crusty bread to soak up the juices!  Depending on comments – or lack of – I’ll put other favourite recipes on from time to time

Recipe: Tartiflette

I’ve chosen this pic as it’s the closest in appearance to the way my tartiflette looks, but if you add pancetta as per my recipe, the extra fried ham shown here really would be a bit much IMHO (!)

Tartiflette is the perfect dish for almost anytime. Here’s a great recipe adapted from Sarah Woodward’s The Food of France.

For authenticity’s sake, try to get hold of a whole Reblochon cheese. Reminiscent of Camembert or Brie in flavour, texture and shape, Reblochon has the perfect melting quality for Tartiflette – it’s available from all good delicatessens in the UK and from larger supermarkets.

Tartiflette

An indulgent dish – it’s important to use a ripe Reblochon cheese.

Serves 4

5 or 6 medium-sized potatoes
2 large white onions, peeled and diced
2 thick rashers of streaky bacon, sliced (I add a 150g pack of pancetta cubes too!)
25g butter
1 garlic clove, peeled and cut in half
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 ripe Reblochon cheese

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/gas mark 5.

Bring a large pan of water to the boil and cook the potatoes whole, in their skins, for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook the onions and bacon in the butter in a heavy frying pan over a medium heat; they should sweat but not brown.

Drain the potatoes and as soon as they are cool enough to handle peel them — the quicker the better.  Slice thickly across.

Choose an ovenproof earthenware dish and rub it well with the cut halves of garlic. Layer half the sliced potatoes across the base, season, then scatter over the onion and bacon mixture.  Add the remaining potatoes and more seasoning.

Place the whole Reblochon on top. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4 for a further 20—25 minutes.  The Reblochon should melt within its skin and the fat drip down while the potatoes crisp.

A filling, scrumptious dish, perfect for lunch or dinner.  I’m told it’s the French equivalent of bubble and squeak!