Here’s something really special for you to enjoy after a day on the slopes, a wintry hike or simply shoveling off the deck and driveway: a pan of potatoes, onions, bacon and cream layered under creamy, salty, nutty raclette cheese. How does that sound?

This baked concoction is one of the best things I’ve eaten in a while and is worth the steps to create this ultra-satisfying dish. In the end, you’ll have a pan of tender, onion-garlic–accented potatoes under a blanket of crispy-edged, melty cheese. Make a green salad, pour a glass of crisp white wine and you’re golden.

Raclette Tartiflette: Cheesy potatoes with some fanciness thrown in. Karen Schneider photo

Yes, you can serve this decadence as a main dish, but it’s also a brilliant side with steak or lamb chops. This combo would be an excellent choice for spoiling your sweetie on this upcoming St. Valentine’s Day.

It really is easy — the potatoes are parboiled in their jackets then left to cool while the bacon is crisped and the onions and garlic are sautéed until tender. Wine and cream are added to the pan, the potatoes are sliced (no need to peel them) and set in the baking dish, layered with the onion mixture, and the cheese slices cover the top. Then the oven works its magic to meld these simple ingredients and crisp up the cheese edges into something that I’m sure the angels eat in heaven.

Now if you can’t find raclette cheese, you can substitute any other good, melting Swiss cheese like Emmentaler, Jarlsberg or even a semi-hard Gouda, as they have similar melting properties and flavor profiles. Also try Gruyere, Appenzeller, Comte, fontina. Just pick your favorite! 

And let’s go all out with a comfy dessert like Grandma used to make. I fondly remember tucking into a big square of this warm cake dripping with lemon sauce on many occasions. You could often find me in her kitchen, soaking in the love. I am one lucky girl.

Now go make a pan of cheesy potatoes and a spicy cake!

Raclette Tartiflette

• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 3 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes
• 8 ounces thick-cut bacon, cut into 1/4-inch lardons
• 3 large yellow onions, thinly sliced
• Kosher salt to taste
• Fresh ground black pepper
• 1/3 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 cup crème fraiche or heavy cream
• 1 pound raclette cheese

Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Cook whole, unpeeled potatoes in salted water for about 15 minutes. (They should still be slightly firm inside.) Drain the potatoes and allow them to cool.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Meanwhile, cook the bacon in a frying pan until crisp, then remove to a plate and set aside.

Reserve two tablespoons bacon fat and sauté the onions and garlic in the pan until soft and translucent. Add wine and cook it off. Turn off the heat and add crème fraiche or cream.

To assemble, cut potatoes into 1/4-inch slices, then line the baking dish with half of them, spooning half the onion-bacon mixture on top, then make another layer.

Generously cover the top with 1/4-inch slices of cheese. Bake until the cheese is melted, 25-30 minutes and starting to turn golden. Yield: 8 servings

My Grandmother’s Gingerbread

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 extra-large egg
• 1 cup dark molasses
• 1/2 cup hot water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch square cake pan. In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, spices and salt.

In a separate bowl, use an electric mixer to cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and beat well. Beat in molasses.

Add dry ingredients to butter mixture alternately with hot water, beating well after each addition.

Pour batter into the cake pan and bake for 35-45 minutes or until cake tests done. Cool in pan on rack. Yield: 9 servings

Lemon Sauce

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup boiling water
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon rind, grated
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice

Combine sugar, cornstarch and salt in a small saucepan and mix well. Stir in boiling water and bring to a boil again, stirring constantly. Lower heat and simmer, stirring, until sauce is thickened and clear. Stir in butter, lemon rind and juice. Serve warm over cake. Yield: 1 cup

Karen Schneider cooks and writes in the village of Cundy’s Harbor. You can reach her at iwrite33@comcast.net.