Snowshoeing in Melchsee-Frutt

**Some catch-up posts are in order, dear readers.  We're taking you back to March for this one.**

Switzerland is the land of skiing.  Ritzy ski resorts, perilous slopes, bragging rights, and perhaps a little more time spent on the après than on the piste.  Swiss children learn how to ski soon after they learn to walk.  The Swiss Ms was not so fortunate.  Her first ski adventure took place well after the higher order functions of her brain were able to connect "going fast" to "breaking bones".  Higher order functions can really take the fun out of skiing.

After nearly an entire winter of avoiding the slopes (and exploring Italian cities instead), we bought an SBB RailAway deal for a day of snowshoeing.  

Perhaps more than any other trip, this day exemplified the beauty of Swiss transport.  Each part of our journey connected to the next nearly seamlessly.  

After taking a train to Luzern, we boarded Die Zentralbahn to the heart of Switzerland, Interlaken.  We exited the train at Sarnen and there waiting for the train, were 3 buses anticipating the influx of weekend visitors to the mountains.

Each bus was equipped with a trailer to hold skis, poles, helmets, sleds, etc, thus saving room on the bus itself for passengers.  

The bus delivered us right to the base of the Stockalp where the gondola whisked you into the mountains.

Our RailAway deal included discounted snowshoe rentals available steps away at Stockalp, round trip train fare, and lift tickets.

Armed with a map we set out to explore the snowshoeing trails.

http://www.melchsee-frutt.ch

The pink lines on the map above indicate snowshoeing trails.  We started our hike by heading towards Erzegg.  It was a sizable climb for first-time showshoers like ourselves and the trail was not well broken due to the recent snowfall.  However, we were rewarded with excellent views.   

Unbroken snow = hard to follow trail

Landmarks like these houses and stream were helpful.

At last, we arrived at Erzegg.

Next stop: Tannalp for lunch.

The snow on this trail was deep.  Compare this photo to the picture above where the sign post is far above our heads.  I think its safe to assume that both polls are about the same height.  

The trail to Tannalp was blissfully downhill, albeit very steep in parts.  It was more heavily traveled than the path to Erzegg.

What hits the spot after hours of climbing in the Swiss prealps?

Bratwurst with onion sauce and alplermagronen with fried onions and applesauce.  That bottle of water was 8 CHF.  We drank all of our water en route and there were no water fountains at this little restaurant.  It had to be done.

Irish Coffee for dessert.

Outdoor seating was popular, but the tables were full when we arrived.

The trip back to Melchsee-Frutt took us on a very well-groomed trail.  It would have been possible to complete this leg of the journey without snowshoes.  

Although it's hard to tell from this picture, the snowshoe/ hiking trail paralleled separate groomed trails for classic cross country skiing and skate skiing.  Maybe next time?

We learned a few lessons from our first snowshoeing experience:

1) We overdressed.  Snowshoeing is a workout.  A heavy coat is not necessary.

2) High altitude sun is no joke.  High altitude sun + reflective snow is worse.  Apply sunscreen everywhere and often.  (Reapply after you blow your nose.  Trust me.)

3) Stay on the trail.  With snow this deep, its impossible to know what snow is supported by ground underneath, and what snow isn't.  Watching fellow snowshoers stray from the path made us nervous, especially considering the steep trough between Erzegg and Tannalp.  As a Swiss once told me: "Respect the mountain".

Thanks for reading!

-The Merry Swiss Ms

A Fondue How-to and Review

Since fondue is relatively easy to prepare and so expensive at restaurants (expect to pay around 30 CHF a person), we finally broke down and bought a fondue set at Manor.

Our beautiful set!  Includes six skewers, a burner, fondue pot holder and fondue pot (caquelon). (Flowers not included)

We thought we would share our fondue making experience with our readers!

Ingredients for Fondue:  (For two people)
Clove of garlic
400 grams of grated cheese (we chose Moitié-Moitié, description below)
150 mL of white wine (the cheapest one you can find, believe it or not the Swiss recommend it)
50 mL (a shot) of Kirsch
2 - 3 teaspoons of corn starch (in German, it's called Maisstärke)
Freshly ground pepper
Love

Ready to go.

Dipping Accoutrements:  Traditionally only bread is dipped.  However, we decided to mix it up.  All ingredients are cut into bite-size pieces
Bread
Potatoes
Apples
Pineapples

Fondue Preparation:
1)  Cut the clove of garlic in half and rub the inside of the caquelon with it.  (The Swiss Ms thinks this is unnecessary if you are adding garlic to the pot anyway, but I say it's part of the tradition and magic of cooking fondue)

2)  Add wine and cheese, warm on medium-low heat to about 60 Celsius (150 Fahrenheit) and stir.

3)  After the cheese has melted a little, mix together the kirsch and corn starch and add it to the cheese mixture.  Keep stirring.  

The cornstarch/kirsch/white wine/cheese.

With a little patience, gentle heating and much stirring comes success.

Note:  The first time I made fondue, I was worried that the cheese and liquids would never combine, but they do.  (For the engineers, it goes from a biphasic liquid/solid to a single, delicious homogenous liquid).  If the cheese and wine separate later, add more corn starch mixed with a cold liquid (wine, kirsch, water, milk).

4)  Place the caquelon on the table over your burner and enjoy!  Spear a tasty comestible of your choosing, dip it in the fondue pot, sprinkle with some pepper if you desire, and enjoy.  (Some Swiss even like to dip the bread in Kirsch before dipping it into the cheese).  Make sure you don't drop your bread in the cheese.  Swiss tradition says a woman has to kiss all the men at the table, while the man has to buy everyone a drink!  (Swiss Ms: This works well when it's just you and your husband.)

400 grams of cheese went down easy.  (Swiss Ms: Too easy.)

Note:  Make sure that someone is always stirring the fondue to keep it from burning.  Over the course of the meal, a delicious crispy layer of cheese will form at the bottom of the pot, right over the burner called religeuse, highly prized and fought over by the Swiss!  It tastes like a Cheez-it.


Fondue Cheese Review:

Moitié-Moitié

Commonly found at COOP and Migros.

Moitié-Moitié is half Gruyère and half Vacherin Fribourgeois cheese, and is absolutely delicious.  This mixture is the most popular type of fondue and once you taste it, you'll know why.  The combination of spicy Gruyère and softly melting Vacherin makes for the perfect, melty pot of cheese.  While we did not smell the cheese while we were eating, you could definitely tell when you left the room and came back.  In fact, when the Swiss Ms. went to the gym, she realized her workout clothes still smelled like dinner!


Appenzeller (Swiss Ms' First Fondue)

While Moitié-Moitié was our first attempt at cooking our own fondue, the Swiss Ms' first fondue experience was with Appenzeller.

Unlike the Moitié-Moitié recipe, which had to be combined with other ingredients, this one was already prepared.  Appenzeller is a slightly sharp cheese, that the advertising copy describes as "spicy".

The packet already had the correct amount of cornstarch/wine/kirsch/cheese.

Just heat slowly until it melts completely.

Unbelievably, it took us almost a full year to try fondue.  

Being shown how to eat fondue properly by our local Zurich host.

The crispy layer of burnt cheese at the bottom of the pot (religeuse).  Yum!

Valais Style (My First Fondue)

My research group took a day retreat to Riederalp in the canton of Valais, where we spent the day talking about science while snow-shoeing and eating fondue! 

I don't remember specifically what cheeses and ingredients are in this fondue.  It seems that there are as many recipes for fondue as there are people who make it.  Everyone has their own unique recipe or "special ingredient."   

The fondue looked like there were two different kinds of melted cheese in the pot.  While tasty, the Swiss in my group did not like this fondue at all, saying it was too garlicky and salty.

So far, my favorite is Moitié-Moitié and the Swiss Ms' favorite is Appenzeller.

As you can see, there's more than one way to do fondue.  We cannot wait to try the others!

-Herr Cervelat

The Unforgettable Schogi Tram

I think we just combined two of the Swiss Ms' favorite things in this post:  (a) desserts and (b) antique trams.

Dreams do come true!

The Swiss Chocolatier Honold hosted a "Schoggi Tram (CHOCOLATE TRAM) in Zurich, for only a week from November 2nd to the 10th (too short!).  This immensely popular ride was only 5 CHF per person (believe it!).  We could not believe that something this amazing could be so affordable in Switzerland, much less Zurich.

The tickets went on sale a half hour before the first trip and cannot be reserved in advance online.  Luckily, we were out shopping for groceries at Coop at Bellevue when we saw the ticket line for the Schoggi-Tram open up.  Seizing the opportunity, we leapt in line to reserve our spot!  

Almost like a ticket to Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory.

THERE IT IS!

 

From the back.

The train starts at Bellevue, goes to Zurich HB before returning to Bellevue: a brisk 20 minute round-trip.

Knowing how punctual the Swiss are, we arrived a good fifteen minutes before our scheduled trip to ensure a good spot.  We were first in line and snagged a prime table for two near the front of the tram!

Eagerly awaiting the ride.

Beautiful antique interior.

They were playing Christmas music!

We got to peak into the driver's compartment.

Our table had fresh flowers.

In typical Swiss fashion, the tram promptly left at 3:30 and drinks, dessert and chocolate were served.  The tram was a little jerky, but it added to the entire experience.

No detail goes unnoticed, like this snow-flake tablecloth.

A tall mug of decadent hot chocolate.

Delicious!  

Doin' hot chocolate right.

Many passerby's admired the Schoggi tram.  Who can blame them?

Next up, Honald's specialty "Pain de Gênes" (an almond cake similar to American pound cake, where almond paste replaces some of the butter).

And to top it all off, chocolate!

On the left plate, dark chocolate covered espresso beans, a mint white chocolate covered in pop-rocks (they fizzed in your mouth!) and a liquor truffle.  On the right plate, cherry chocolate and plain dark chocolate.

Whew!  That was a ton of food to finish on our twenty minute journey.
  

As we got off, we noticed that the tram staff had already prepared for the next group of lucky riders!  We should have bought more tickets...

Thanks for reading!

-Herr Cervelat