René Tourette
La Cloche à fromage
René Tourette
La Cloche à Fromage – Episode 1 – The history between the two Maisons
Massenez 150 years
The links with the Maison Massenez
Founded in 1988 by René Tourrette, La Cloche à Fromage is an institution in Strasbourg.
As soon as you enter, you will discover the impressive cabinet topped by a bell measuring 1.96m with a diameter of 1.88m. 90 varieties are displayed and matured on site in their cellar. We use Massenez Liqueurs and Eaux-de-Vie to mature, cook and accompany our cheese specialities, explains René Tourrette. Their added value is that they are easy to digest. Of course, we offer to finish the meal with a digestive, a moment of sharing and conviviality par excellence. “We’ve been working with Massenez for 30 years,” adds Thibaut Burger, the restaurant’s manager. “We improve recipes by enhancing the aromatic character of the cheese, such as our Alsatian farmhouse Munster cheese fondue flambéed with Marc from Massenez,
our white wine fondue with aged goat’s cheese flambéed with Kirsch Massenez or our fourme d’Ambert matured with Golden Eight®. We have also created a Golden Eight® Pear Liqueur jelly to sublimate our duck foie gras.
To celebrate the 150th anniversary of Massenez, Thibaut has added Crémant d’Alsace to the Dom Pacello Royal Orange® Liqueur to celebrate this anniversary with festive bubbles.
“We are impressed by their creativity”, marvelled Bernard Baud. “We had the honour of tasting a range of recipes with our products in savoury, sweet, flambéed and drizzled versions. There’s the right balance between fat and fruitiness to sublimate the aromatic powers of these cheese dishes.
The recipe
Iced soufflé with Massenez Questche Eau-de-Vie,
violet-purple opaline, dacquoise biscuit and compote of Alsatian quetsche.
Iced soufflé with Massenez Questche Eau-de-Vie, violet-purple opaline, dacquoise biscuit and compote of Alsatian quetsche.
Ingredients for 12 persons :
To be prepared the day before:
The dacquoise biscuit:
- 480g of egg white
- 300g icing sugar
- 300g almond powder
- 40g caster sugar
Procedure :
Mounting the whites in snow. Once the mixture is almost firm, add the caster sugar and continue beating until it is firm. Mix the almond powder and icing sugar in a bowl.
Gently fold this mixture into the egg whites. Spread to a thickness of 2 cm on a baking tray covered with baking paper. Cook for 12 minutes at 180°C.
Leave to cool. Cut out the dacquoise discs with a cookie cutter.
The quetsche soufflé :
- 1L of liquid cream
- 25cl of Massenez Questche Eau-de-Vie
- 310g caster sugar
- 500g of egg white
- 260g of egg yolk
- 230g caster sugar
Procedure :
Whip the cream. Once it is almost whipped, add the Eau-de-Vie and keep in the fridge. Gently beat the egg whites. Pour the 310g of sugar and 10cl of water into a saucepan and heat to 121°C. Leave to swirl until cool. Repeat the operation with the egg yolks and the 230g of sugar. Once the three masses are at room temperature, delicately incorporate the yolks into the whites then add the whipped cream flavoured with Eau-de-Vie de Quetsche Massenez.
On a baking tray or dish covered with baking paper, arrange the dacquoise discs in a circle of the same size. Complete with the soufflé machine and leave to set overnight in the freezer.
The next day :
The quetsche-violet opaline:
- 300g of pastry white fondant
- 200g of glucose
- 2cl of Massenez Questche Eau-de-Vie
- 4g violet tea
- 3 drops of purple dye (optional)
Procedure :
Bring together in a saucepan the white fondant, glucose, Eau-de-Vie and the colouring agent.
Bring to 150°C then remove on baking paper. Once it has cooled down, put the mixture in a blender. Sieve this powder finely on baking paper, sprinkle with violet tea and bake in the oven at 150°C until the opaline takes on a liquid appearance. Remove from the oven and leave to cool.
The compote of quetsches :
- 100g of butter
- 70g brown sugar
- 1 kg of Alsace quetsches
- 1 stick of cinnamon
Procedure :
Melt the butter in a frying pan, add the sugar and let it brown slightly. Add the quetsches and the cinnamon. Leave to simmer for 10 to 15 minutes on a low heat.
Dressing :
Take the soufflés out of the freezer. Turn them out of the mould and place them on a plate. Spread the quetsche compote on and around the soufflé. Add the opalines.
Small suggestions :
Prepare a quetsche coulis to draw a few patterns on the plates before assembly. Using a Parisian apple spoon, form small balls of vanilla or quetsche ice cream. Arrange on the soufflé.
Thibaut Burger & René Tourette
La Cloche à fromage
