We tend to jealously guard our weekends for Paris, but we do occasionally leave town for a few days. The beaches of Normandy are two hours by train from Paris and with the high speed TGV trains, Marseille is only three hours away. The TGV zooms across the varied landscape of France passing through farmland and forests, rivers, valleys and ever-changing scenery dotted with village churches. Zurich is only a four hour trip from Paris by the high speed TGV/Lyria train so we took advantage of the Bastille Day weekend to visit friends in their converted farm house in the countryside not far from Zurich.
 |
| Hard-boiled eggs in a Swiss Metzgerei © 2012 K-Rae Nelson |
Saturday morning
we wandered through the local market exclaiming at prices, a perennial
pastime for foreign visitors to Switzerland, and slipped into a Metzgerei,
a butcher, and admired the basket of brightly colored hard-boiled eggs. In
Switzerland, at least around Zurich, hard-boiled eggs are colored to
distinguish them from raw eggs. As I was leaving I spied a particularly
appealing piece of dark cured bacon that had been rubbed in what looked like
pickling spices, called Vesperspeck, presumably because it is traditionally
eaten in the evening as part of a simple supper following vespers. We continued
our shopping, debating the merits of various locally grown cherries that cost
$12-$14 per kilo. After tasting plum and pear Eigenbrand, or eau-de-vie, and
trying to decipher the labels on the local jams, we came across a butcher case
with wild boar. We couldn't resist taking home a Wildschweinfilet which had us
hastening back to the mushroom vendor to pick up some tiny local chanterelle
mushrooms called Eierschwamm, "egg sponge". Out of curiosity we asked
the cost of the black summer truffles. 11 Swiss francs seemed ridiculously
affordable, especially in a country where the standard public restroom entry fee is 2 francs, about $2. We raced home and gluttonously prepared a
luncheon feast before the evening arrival of friends. We did save the truffle,
sliced into paper-thin slices and stirred into creamy scrambled eggs, for
Sunday's breakfast.
 |
| Wild Boar Tenderloin with Eierschwamm mushrooms © 2012 K-Rae Nelson |
Wild Boar Tenderloin & Sautéed Eierschwamm mushrooms
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 wild boar tenderloin
200g tiny chanterelle or eierschwamm mushrooms
2 Tbs. thinly sliced bacon or Vesperspeck
2 cloves garlic
2 Tbs. chopped parsley
Sea salt, freshly ground pepper, herbes de provence
3 Tbs. Plum eau-de-vie
Splash of red wine
1 Tbs. mustard
3 Tbs. sherry vinegar
Olive oil
1 Tbs. cold butter
1) Rinse mushrooms, peel and chop garlic, thinly slice Vesperspeck.
2) Mix 1 Tbs. mustard with 3 Tbs. sherry vinegar and 1-2 Tbs. water in bowl. Set aside.
3) Remove meat from packaging and pat dry. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place on plate.
4) Heat skillet, preferably cast iron, and add a film of olive oil. Add mushrooms and sea salt. Cook over medium-high heat while water from the mushrooms evaporates. Add a healthy splash of eau-de-vie and cook until absorbed. Toss in bacon. Season with pepper, stir, and add chopped parsley. Remove mushrooms from pan.
5) Pat meat dry, sprinkle with herbes de provence.
6) Return the skillet to the heat and add a film of olive oil. When hot, add tenderloin to pan. Sear on medium-high heat for 2 minutes on each side. Reduce heat, add a splash of wine, let cook off, cover to cook for another 2-3 minutes. Check for doneness. The wild boar tenderloin cooks very quickly so be careful to not overcook.
7) Remove tenderloin from skillet. Slice thinly.
8) On stovetop, increase heat, add mustard/vinegar mixture. Stir until thickened slightly, a minute or so. Add 1 Tbs. butter, swirl until melted. Return sliced meat to pan, coat with pan sauce. Return mushrooms to pan. Turn off heat, cover and let warm a couple of minutes before serving.
9) Serve with a salad of cooked diced beets tossed with chopped garlic and parsley and dressed with a sherry vinegar and mustard vinaigrette.
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 wild boar tenderloin
200g tiny chanterelle or eierschwamm mushrooms
2 Tbs. thinly sliced bacon or Vesperspeck
2 cloves garlic
2 Tbs. chopped parsley
Sea salt, freshly ground pepper, herbes de provence
3 Tbs. Plum eau-de-vie
Splash of red wine
1 Tbs. mustard
3 Tbs. sherry vinegar
Olive oil
1 Tbs. cold butter
1) Rinse mushrooms, peel and chop garlic, thinly slice Vesperspeck.
2) Mix 1 Tbs. mustard with 3 Tbs. sherry vinegar and 1-2 Tbs. water in bowl. Set aside.
3) Remove meat from packaging and pat dry. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place on plate.
4) Heat skillet, preferably cast iron, and add a film of olive oil. Add mushrooms and sea salt. Cook over medium-high heat while water from the mushrooms evaporates. Add a healthy splash of eau-de-vie and cook until absorbed. Toss in bacon. Season with pepper, stir, and add chopped parsley. Remove mushrooms from pan.
5) Pat meat dry, sprinkle with herbes de provence.
6) Return the skillet to the heat and add a film of olive oil. When hot, add tenderloin to pan. Sear on medium-high heat for 2 minutes on each side. Reduce heat, add a splash of wine, let cook off, cover to cook for another 2-3 minutes. Check for doneness. The wild boar tenderloin cooks very quickly so be careful to not overcook.
7) Remove tenderloin from skillet. Slice thinly.
8) On stovetop, increase heat, add mustard/vinegar mixture. Stir until thickened slightly, a minute or so. Add 1 Tbs. butter, swirl until melted. Return sliced meat to pan, coat with pan sauce. Return mushrooms to pan. Turn off heat, cover and let warm a couple of minutes before serving.
9) Serve with a salad of cooked diced beets tossed with chopped garlic and parsley and dressed with a sherry vinegar and mustard vinaigrette.
