The Christmas of a Raclette Virgin

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!  Mine was very interesting. I was invited by a friend whom I met through my sis-in-law at their place for an outdoor dinner. The hosts did an excellent job with the decoration. Tea light candles, a tent with a contemporary majliis for the aperitif. Imagine, area rug, sofa all around, lanterns, music.. twisted cheese sticks, mixed nuts & bubbly.  The best tasting salmon  flown in from Norway  on toast and the tastiest foie-gras fresh  from Paris!

For dinner, there was a romantic setup under a gazebo festively decorated with tea lights and a beautiful table setting! Our french hosts, Julien & Lisa are definitely amazing at throwing parties!   I didn't want to ruin the moment so I didn't take pictures.  It was one of those occasions where you want to keep the images fresh in your mind and not share online with facebook friends because it was too precious.  It would just lose its magic if I post tons of pictures of it. 

Their warm company added to the special evening as I discovered raclette for the very first time.  

Boiled potatoes, charcuterie and you can add in veggies if you like.  

The raclette cheese was also an import from France flown in days before the party. This was the raclette grill that looked similar to what we have used.  

Melt the cheese in the grill and pour it over your meat and potatoes.  Aaah!

Verdict:  Heaven!

2011 December is a Raclette Christmas for me. We were told raclette is more of a winter dish.

To top it all off, our host, Julien baked his grandmother's family recipe of a chocolate cake that he used to have every Christmas dinner.  It was beyond words!