Maxime

Baguettine, also known as Baguette flambée (“fired baguette”), is definitely one of my favorite things about the Christmas markets in my home region of Alsace. If you have ever been there during this time of year, you know that you cannot pass on a good baguettine!

The Christkindelsmärik of Strasbourg is the oldest Christmas market in France- boasting a history of 4 centuries, dating back to 1570! It draws in 2 million visitors every year. Even after moving to the U.S., I look forward to visiting home for the holidays every year and going to the market with my family.

Imagine wandering down the twinkling aisles of the market on a cold snowy day, warming up your hands and belly with a delicious creamy baked baguette, and washing everything down with some vin chaud (mulled wine). I’m hungry just thinking about it!

Essentially a Tarte Flambée in baguette-form, it is traditionally made with a mixture of crème fraîche, fromage blanc, and nutmeg; topped with onion, lardon, and gruyère cheese; then baked. The crispy baguette paired with the creamy spread, savory bacon, sweet onion, and melted cheese is unbeatable.

While it is associated with the Christmas markets, baguettine is a super easy year-round recipe that can make for a great lunch or appetizer for a dinner party.

Even though I am not going home for Christmas this year, we can all travel to Alsace together. You just have to close your eyes and take a big bite of baguettine!

INGREDIENTS

For this delicious treat popular around the winter time, but good year-around, you will need the following list of ingredients. This recipe is very flexible in that you can adjust the quantities of each of these ingredients based on your preferences,

• Baguette: the quality of the baguette plays a major part in the quality of your baguettine. Fun fact: In France, by a law enacted in 1993, a traditional baguette can only contain four ingredients: flour, leavening, water, and salt. A classic French baguette with a nice golden, crispy crust is optimal!
• Lardon: fatty slab bacon diced into matchsticks. You can also use thick cut bacon or diced pancetta.
• Crème fraîche: a French soured cream containing about 30% butterfat, higher than that of sour cream and is thicker, richer, and less acidic. It is very close to crema fresca in Central America. Crème fraîche is produced in many parts of France, but the crème fraîche from Normandie is famous and the crème fraîche from a defined area around the town of Isigny-sur-Mer is highly regarded. We always buy crème fraîche from this region when available!
• Fromage blanc: a fresh cheese originating from the north of France and southern Belgium. The name means “white cheese” in French. It is a creamy soft cheese made with whole or skimmed milk and cream. Sadly, fromage blanc is difficult to find in the U.S. but worry not, quark or Greek yogurt make for perfectly good substitutes!
• Gruyère: a hard Swiss/Alpine cheese that originated in the western region of Switzerland. It is named after the town of Gruyères in Fribourg. It is earthy, nutty, and fruity. A great melting cheese, it is also used French onion soup, croque-monsieur, and fondue! If you cannot find Gruyère, you can substitute with Emmental which is milder.
• Nutmeg: a beloved spice in French, and especially Alsatian, cuisine. It has a warm, nutty, and very distinct flavor profile. It is used in béchamel sauce and dishes like œufs cocottes and coq au Riesling.
• White onion
• Salt
• Pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven at 175°C / 350°F.
2. In a bowl, mix together: crème fraîche, fromage blanc (or alternative), salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Cover and store in the fridge while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
3. If using bacon strips, cut into 1cm wide pieces.
4. Cut onion in half pole to pole (cutting through top and root end), quarter if needed, then thinly slice pole to pole.
5. Cut a 15 cm-long piece from the baguette, then cut it in half lengthwise (side to side) to create 2 pieces. Repeat to get the number of servings you are making.
   It is best to use the middle section of the baguette rather than the ends, so that the shape is even. The ends can be used for croutons or breadcrumbs, or just eaten with some good butter!
6. Place the pieces of baguette, crust side down, on a lined baking sheet.
7. Spread the cream mix on the baguette pieces.
8. Distribute onion and bacon pieces on the cream.
9. Grate gruyère evenly over the top.
10. Bake for 12 minutes.
11. Set oven to broil on high for 3 minutes or until the cheese is golden.
12. Remove from oven and bon appétit !

RECIPE VIDEO

Baguettine / Baguette flambée • Creamy baked baguette with bacon, onion, and Gruyère

Course: Appetizers, MainsCuisine: FrenchDifficulty: Easy

Makes

4

baguettines

Prep time

15

minutes

Cooking time

15

minutes

Total time

30

minutes

A winter-time Alsatian treat: baguette covered with nutmeg cream, bacon, onion, and gruyère cheese, then baked to perfection.

Ingredients

• 1 1 baguette

• 100 g 100 lardon (alternative: thick-cut bacon or diced pancetta)

• 80 g 80 white onion

• 80 g 80 crème fraîche

• 90 g 90 fromage blanc (alternative: quark or Greek yogurt)

• 1 tsp 1 nutmeg

• 1 tsp 1 salt

• 1/2 tsp 1/2 pepper

• 75 g 75 gruyère cheese

Directions

• Preheat oven at 175°C / 350°F.
• In a bowl, mix together: crème fraîche, fromage blanc (or alternative), salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Cover and store in the fridge while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
• If using bacon strips, cut into 1 cm wide pieces.
• Cut onion in half- pole to pole (cutting through top and root end), quarter if needed, then thinly slice pole to pole.
• Cut a 15 cm-long piece from the baguette, then cut it in half lengthwise (side to side) to create 2 pieces. Repeat to get the number of servings you are making.
  It is best to use the middle section of the baguette rather than the ends, so that the shape is even. The ends can be used for croutons or breadcrumbs, or just eaten with some good butter!
• Place the pieces of baguette, crust side down, on a lined baking sheet.
• Spread the cream mix on the baguette pieces.
• Distribute onion and bacon pieces on the cream.
• Grate gruyère evenly over the top.
• Bake for 12 minutes.
• Set oven to broil on high for 3 minutes or until the cheese is golden.
• Remove from oven and bon appétit !

Recipe Video

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