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No, no, no. "flammeküeche" it is not an alsatian word - what language is that by the way? - but german, and it is actually "Flammküchle" or "Flammkuchen", which means simply flame-pie.

Not to be obtuse, but what exactly is fromage blanc, aside from white cheese? What would I ask for at a store in the U.S.?

I had flammkuchen (sp?) in Germany last summer and it was so delicious, I'd love to try to recreate it.

Zeta,

Alsatian is a dialect spoken in France and the way I have spelled it is the way it is spelled here.

More on Alsatian here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alsatian_language

And yes, you are right about the German spelling, which is different than the Alsatian spelling of the same thing:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flammekueche

Zeta,

Fromage blanc is a fat-free white "cheese" that has the consistency of crème fraîche but has a slightly more sour taste (it's also very popular here because it is lower in calories). You can also find fromage blanc with cream added, making it less than fat-free.

If making this in the U.S., you could use sour cream or crème fraîche.

Sorry, that last comment was for Mercy Street!

Even though we are in the French part of Switzerland, it is known as "flammekueche" here, as well as in France's Haute Savoie, where it is a very common food (you can buy them frozen in the supermarkets).

Fromage Blanc is as smooth as crème fraîche, but tastes more like cottage cheese (not as tangy). Here, I've always seen it with crème fraîche or a mixture with heavy cream.

Damn! That looks good.

I love the irregular shape.

This looks really good, I've bookmarked it so I can try it some time soon.

// Mike

http://www.freestylecookery.com

Art,

If you buy them frozen or from a street vendor or a restaurant, they are usually rectangular or circular in shape. But I was rushing to get the photos done in time for my post!

im wondering if this would be good w/ apples on it.

my friends and i started a sort of "supper club" and this months theme is apples. i found a recipe for an apple & gorgonzola pizza that i was considering ...

but this sounds delicious.

any thoughts ?

I love apples and onions together. And Apples and bacon? Delightful!

I say try it, taratnt! let us know how it turns out!

Mmmm apples...

I have to admit that I usually keep the Trader Joe's (Trader Jacques) version in my freezer. It's quite handy for when you invite people over for a glass of wine but have nothing in the cupboard to offer as a nosh. Just pop the frozen disk into a very hot oven, wait 7 minutes, then cut it into bite-sized pieces. Yummy!

trader joes has frozen version that's not bad. it's not as good as a homemade tarte flambee from alsace but it's a good quick substitute.

This looks so good!!

Trader Joe's has a frozen "Tarte Alsace," with ham, gruyere and caramelized onions that is quite tasty if you need one in a pinch.

Didn't know that Trader Joe's has a frozen version. They have them here, too. But if you have the dough ready, this is so incredibly easy and lightning quick to assemble that you really don't need to buy it pre-made!

Regarding the apple question: if you try it, just remember to slice them mandoline-thin so that they cook quickly with the other ingredients.

This looks delicious...I've been doing so much cooking with onions, but I'm not sure I can resist this...

Flammeküeche is fabulous - a buddy and I spent some time in Alsace about 6 or 7 years ago, wandering around on the Wine Trail - in nearly every pub / bistro / little hole in the wall you venture into, there's several types of flammeküeche on the menu. Excellent with a chilled Alsatian dry Reisling. If anyone is looking for a non-standard French destination, Alsace is terrific - ancient walled villages, wine caves everywhere, amazing food, spectacular landscapes. Thanks for the recipe - good memories!

If you need a tarte flambe fix right away, go to the Barr Room restaurant at the Museum of Modern Art in NYC. They have killer tarte flambe because the head chef is Alsatian. Great Alsatian wines by the glass, too!

Flammeküeche was favorite when I lived a little German Village named Durlach, which is quite near Strasbourg. We used to make it with Quark--which I have seen at Zabars.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quark_(cheese)

If I were to substitute it I would not use sour cream. flammeküeche does not taste sour. I probably use fage yogurt and let it sit in a sieve for an hour or so beforehand.

yum! I had this back when I went backpacking through Strasbourg and it was great! I have a Trader Joe's version in my freezer waiting to try, and I'll definitely need to pair it with a bottle of Riesling...and of course make it on my own sometime now that I know the ingredients are so simple!

200 g plain flour
2 tablespoons oil
125 ml water
a pinch of salt
Mix all ingredients to a batter.

200 g Crème double or Créme fraiche
200 g onions
100 g streaky bacon
a bit of cream

Preheat oven to maximum. Slice onions and ham finely, mix Créme and a bit of cream and smear it on the thinly rolled out batter. Place onions and ham on top and cook in the oven for 15-20 minutes.

i love flammkuchen (this is the most common german spelling - but there are several possible spellings of the same thing)! here in berlin there are no regular street vendors selling flammkuchen but they are a popular treat at german weihnachtsmärkte (= christmas markets). usually i just make them at home: some pizza or bread dough, crème fraîche, onions and bacon - that's even faster than making pizza on my own since i don't need to cook some tomato sauce! i usually serve flammkuchen with some simple green salad. great! maybe i should cook some tomorrow...

I love Tarte Flambee! I first tasted it when I studied in Strasbourg for a year. There's one restaurant there (Flams, I think) where you can get all you can eat for about 15 Euros. They have several different varieties - regular, mushroom, cheese - then berry tarte flambee for dessert. I've never tried to make it stateside b/c I didn't know what to use for the creme fraiche, but now I'll try fage yogurt (thanks Kit!). Also, for the crust, I wonder if lavash bread might work? Authentic Tarte Flambee has a much thinner crust than pizza, it has more of the texture of lavash bread you can get at Trader Joe's.