Serves 4
Prep time 30 minutes
Ingredients
Salt to taste
100g lard/butter
1kg local, small potatoes, washed, skin on
2 large onions, peeled and cut into thick slices
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
250g smoked, diced pancetta
100ml white wine
200ml cream
450g-500g Reblochon cheese, cubed (skin on)
Method
Cook potatoes in a pan of salted, boiling water for 10 minutes or until tender. Drain and set aside. When cool enough to handle, cut into thick slices.
Meanwhile, heat lard in a non-stick frying pan. Over medium heat, cook onions and pancetta until onions are soft and translucent and pancetta until brown. Remove pancetta, onions and fat from pan and mix well with potatoes.
Check for seasoning.
In a pan, add garlic, cook quickly and add wine. Reduce by half and add to potato mix.
To assemble
Spoon half the mix into a ceramic baking dish (You will serve it in the dish). Top with half the cheese. Repeat
Drizzle cream over mix.
Bake at 200°C for 20-25 minutes or until cream bubbling and cheese nicely browned.
Serve with nice, crusty Maltese bread
Chef’s tips:
Lard is a beautiful, forgotten fat that adds great flavour to food and has a higher cooking temperature than butter and now that naturally found saturated fat is no longer our arteries’ worst enemy, I hope to see humble lard making a comeback in most kitchens. It certainly is used in mine!
To check if potatoes are done, pierce with a small knife – if done, the potato will slip easily off the knife
Raclette cheese is a great substitute for reblochon if you cannot find the latter.
