cheesy bacony creamy potatoey stodge.

I got some reblechon cheese brought back from Brussels. Reblechon cheese = tartiflette!

ingredients:

• block of reblechon cheese
• sliced bacon/ rashers
• onions
• potatoes
• crème fraîche (I actually forgot and used sour cream in this one...which was fine too).
• possibly milk if you need to make the crème fraîche or sour cream a little more liquid.
• pepper
• olive oil
• white wine if its around!

... you also need a baking dish.

Sorry, I'm not giving quantities, it doesn't really matter, just do whatever to suit your taste.

1. First, set the oven to 150 degrees celcius, to heat up while you are preparing the dish.
2. Peel and slice the potatoes, they should be a brand that are nice and soft when cooked, rather than more rubbery. Put them in a pot of boiled water and simmer for 5 or 10 minutes to soften a little.
3. Chop the onions and bacon slices and fry in a pan with some olive oil, frying gently on a low heat. when nearly cooked add pepper and white wine and leave on low heat for a short while to allow flavours to mix and wine to soak in.
4. At some point while the onions and bacon are frying, you should drain the poatoes from the water and leave them to sit in the pot until you need them.
5. When the onions and bacon are cooked, pour half of them into the baking dish. Then layer half of the potatoes on top of the onion and bacon. Repeat with another layer of the remainder of the onion and bacon, and finally a layer of the remaining potato.
6. Next you want to pour the crème fraîche into the baking dish so that it envelops the whole mixture. Crème fraîche in Brussels is nice and liquidy so it filters down easily, but for crème fraîche/sour cream in Ireland I mix it with a little milk because its a bit firm by itself and just stays on top.
7. Finally, unwrap that big beautiful block of scrumdiddiliumptuous cheese and cut into quarters. Place all four quarters across the top of the potato and cream...or indeed only two quarters if you are making a smaller dish.
8. Place in the oven and cook for an hour...or until the potatoes in the centre are soft.

Serve a big stodgy portion all by itself on a plate...comfort food heaven!

Before: (with reblechon cheese packet!)