Minipic - The Swiss Snack

Replace ham with minipic and you have an unconventional carbonara

Serves 4

500–600 g fresh egg pasta
Salt
175 g butter
150 g Parmesan, grated
6 minipics, sliced
Pepper, freshly ground
8 quail eggs, fried

Cook pasta in boiling salted water until al dente. Measure out 200 ml of cooking water and set aside.

Warm a plate and melt 150 g of butter on it.

Drain pasta and mix with remaining butter. Transfer onto plate.

Sprinkle with cheese and minipics, then with cooking water. Mix immediately using two large forks.

To serve: Grind pepper over the carbonara and place quail eggs on top.

Cheese and minipic together in the best possible combination

10–12 mini flan tins, about 7 cm in diameter

350 g shortcrust pastry, rolled out

Topping: 1 tbsp. flour
200 ml milk
3 eggs
whisked Nutmeg
pepper
paprika
200 g cheese, e.g. Gruyère
grated 1/2 bunch of mixed herbs
chopped 5–6 minipics, sliced

Cut round shapes out of the dough, about 8cm in diameter. Place in the mini flan tins, pull the edges well up and prick the base all over with a fork. Place tins on a baking tray. Preheat oven to 220 °C.

Topping: Mix flour, milk and eggs until smooth, then season. Sprinkle cheese, herbs and minipics evenly over the pastry cases in the tins. Pour liquid mixture over the top.

Bake cheese tartlets in the lower part of the oven for 15-20 minutes.

Serve with salad.

Pasta cooked differently

Serves 4

1 tbsp. olive oilf
1 tbsp. butter 
300 g oyster mushrooms or large mushrooms, finely chopped 
6 minipics, cut into small pieces 
100 g pork sausage meat 
400 g pasta, e.g. conchiglie, penne, ditalini 
800 ml chicken stock, hot Grated Parmesan 
2 sprigs of flat-leaf parsley 
Pepper freshly ground 
1–2 handfuls of baby leaf salad, e.g. rocket or beetroot leaves

Heat up olive oil together with butter. Add mushrooms and lightly fry on a medium heat, while turning. Add minipics and sausage meat and fry. Reduce heat.

Add pasta, then mix. Cover and cook for 1 minute.

Cover with 1–2 ladles of stock. Slowly boil down on low heat, while stirring. Only add more stock when all liquid has been absorbed. Cook pasta until al dente, stirring occasionally.

Take pan off the heat..Mix in 2–3 tbsp. of cheese. Sprinkle with parsley.

To serve: Sprinkle pasta with ground pepper and salad leaves.

Your children's new favourite!

Makes 6

6 hot dog buns 
2 tbsp. butter, softened 
2 handfuls of lettuce 
120 g Emmental cheese, thinly sliced 
12-18 minipics

Cut buns in half lengthwise, spread butter on the lower half. Add lettuce, cheese and minipics. Cover with top half of bun.

Serve with mustard or ketchup.

The best of the Alsace and Switzerland combined: flammkuchen and minipic

1 baking tray, 32–35 cm in diameter

1 portion flammkuchen dough, about 260 g, rolled out into a circle (alternatively: bread dough or pizza dough)

Topping: 8-10 minipics, finely sliced
A little clarified butter
2 large onions, finely sliced
150 g quark
100 ml cream
1/2 tsp. salt
Pepper, freshly ground
Nutmeg, freshly ground

Place dough onto a baking tray lined with baking paper and prick all over with a fork. Refrigerate. Preheat oven to 250 °C.

Topping: Fry minipics in clarified butter. Remove and drain on kitchen towel. Sauté onions in remaining fried butter until translucent. Mix onions and minipics then leave to cool.

Mix quark, cream and spices. Spread half the quark mixture on the dough, leaving a centimetre-wide edge uncovered.

Sprinkle with onion mixture and cover with remaining quark mixture.

Bake in the middle of the oven for 12–15 minutes.

To serve: Cut flammkuchen into strips and serve hot.

Tips:
Prepare dough from 200 g flour, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. dry yeast and 100–150 ml lukewarm water; leave to double in size.
Use crème fraîche instead of quark and cream.

Good to prepare in advance can be served hot or cold

Serves 4

4 waxy potatoes, e.g. Charlotte, peeled
3 tbsp. olive oil
1 white onion, sliced into rings
4-6 minipics, finely sliced
1/2 bunch of flat-leaf parsley, chopped
6–8 fresh eggs
Pinch of salt
Pepper, freshly ground

Cut potatoes into thin slices. Heat 2 tbsp. of olive oil in a large non-stick frying pan. Add potatoes and fry for about 10 minutes on a medium heat while turning.

Add onion and minipics, cook briefly on a low heat. Sprinkle with 2/3 of the parsley.

Season and whisk eggs then pour them over the top. Leave to thicken on low heat, partially covered.

Use a plate to turn the tortilla upside down with. Add remaining olive oil to the pan, put tortilla back in and finish frying the second side.

To serve: cut tortilla into slices or cubes. Serve hot as a main meal with salad, or cold as a snack.

The Swiss classic becomes even more of a classic with minipic

Serves 4

800 g floury potatoes, e.g. Désirée
1 onion, finely chopped
2 carrots, peeled, cut into strips
6 minipics, sliced
1/2–3/4 tsp. salt
3–4 tbsp. clarified butter
1 tbsp. butter

Steam the potatoes unpeeled with the lid on, until they have just softened. Peel while still hot. Place in a plastic bag and refrigerate overnight.

Grate potatoes with a large cheese grater. Mix with vegetables, minipics and salt.

Heat up clarified butter in a large non-stick frying pan. Add potato mixture and fry for 15–20 minutes on a medium heat, turning regularly. Shape the mixture so that it resembles a cake, then fry for another 5–10 minutes, until a golden crust forms.

Melt butter along the edge of the rösti. Turn rösti upside down with the aid of a lid or plate. Serve immediately.

An invigorating soup for cold autumn and winter days

Serves 4

1 leek, darker part of leaves removed, finely chopped
1 tbsp. butter
600 g pumpkin or squash, e.g. Butternut, diced
400-500 ml water
Salt or stock, according to taste
100 ml cream

Herb salad:
1 cup mixed herbs, e.g. parsley, chives, coriander and mint, with leaves coarsely chopped
1 small carrot, peeled, grated
1 cucumber, peeled, finely diced
Lemon juice
A little olive oil

4 minipics, sliced, briefly fried

Sauté leek in butter until translucent. Add pumpkin and sauté while stirring. Cover with water and bring to boil then add seasoning. Cover and simmer on low heat for 20–30 minutes.

Mix soup and bring to boil again. Refine with cream then simmer briefly.

Herb salad: Mix herbs, carrot and cucumber. Add lemon juice and olive oil to taste.

To serve: pumpkin soup with minipics and herb salad.

The food of our homeland – even tastier with added minipic

Serves 4

80 g pearl barley
1 tbsp. butter
300 g colourful carrots, peeled, sliced
1.2–1.5 l water
1 onion, with 1 bay leaf attached, pierced through by 2cloves
1 calf's foot
6-8 minipics, sliced
A little stock as seasoning
Pepper, freshly ground
2 handfuls of spinach or chard
4 tbsp. cream
1/2 bunch of chives, chopped

Lightly sauté barley in butter. Add carrots and cook. Cover with water and bring to boil. Add onion, calf's foot and minipics. Cover and simmer on low heat for 90 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Season the barley soup with stock and pepper according to taste.

Shortly before serving, add spinach or chard, plus cream, simmer briefly. Sprinkle with chives and serve.

Serve with wholegrain bread.

A real pick-me-up on the breakfast table

Serves 1

1–2 fresh eggs, each about 55 g
1/4 baguette, cut into long diagonal slices, toasted
1 knob of butter
1 minipic

Add eggs to cold water and bring to boil with pan covered. As soon as the water boils, begin timing: boil for 5–6 minutes, or as desired.

Immediately remove eggs and place in egg cups.

To serve: remove top third of egg and add a little butter to the yolk. Stir and use baguette slices and minipic to dip and eat.

For the salad buffet on warm summer evenings

Serves 4

200 g macaroni 
Salt 
2 onions, finely sliced 
4–6 large gherkins, sliced 
6 minipics, sliced 
1 bunch of parsley, chopped 
4–6 tbsp. salad dressing, made from vinegar, oil and a little mustard
unseasoned (minipics and gherkins provide enough seasoning)

Boil macaroni in salted water following the instructions on the packet, until al dente. Drain, rinse with cold water and leave to drain well.

Sprinkle onions with a pinch of salt. Place in sieve and leave to drain for at least 30 minutes.

Shortly before serving, mix macaroni with onions, gherkins, minipics, parsley and salad dressing.

Serve with hardboiled eggs and bread.

Risotto with minipic slices– a delightful side dish or main meal

Serves 4–6

1.2–1.5 l stock, e.g. chicken, meat or vegetable stock
1 small cauliflower, about 500 g, cut into florets
100 g stale bread, dry, chopped
Butter for frying
2 tbsp. parsley, chopped
4–6 minipics, sliced

Risotto:
25 g butter
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 celery sticks, finely chopped
1 sprig of thyme
1 bay leaf
350 g risotto rice, e.g. Carnaroli, Arborio, Baldo, Vialone
100 ml dry white wine
40–50 g butter
25–50 g Parmesan, freshly grated
Pepper, freshly ground
Grated Parmesan to serve

Bring the stock to the boil. Add the cauliflower and simmer. Keep warm.

Fry the bread in butter until crisp. Add parsley and minipics then fry. Set aside.

Risotto: Heat up butter and olive oil in a large pan. Add onion, celery, thyme and bay leaf, then sauté on a medium heat until translucent (7 minutes).

Sprinkle in the rice and cook while stirring until the rice grains glisten all over and quietly crackle. Coat with wine and reduce completely.

Add 1 ladle of stock, about 200 ml, without cauliflower. Stir constantly until the liquid has almost boiled down. Gradually add the rest of the stock until the risotto, after 17–25 minutes, is al dente and creamy.

Take the pan off the heat then remove thyme and bay leaf. Thoroughly stir butter and cheese into the risotto. Add cauliflower. Pour in a little stock, as required.

To serve: Place risotto on pre-heated plates. Grind pepper over the top and sprinkle with minipic slices. Serve with Parmesan.