MmeLindt! Swiss People! People who live in Switzerland! Please help...

[habbibu]

It's a friend's 50th this weekend, and we're all going to stay in a cottage he's rented for a few nights. I thought I'd make him a birthday cake, and thought it might be a nice idea to combine his Swiss and Scottish roots. Now, the Scottish bit I can do - tablet, whisky, raspberries oats kind of flavours, but what kind of things are Swiss? Are there traditional Swiss cakes i can adapt?

For example, is there really a [http://www.passionateaboutbaking.com/2010/06/baking-swiss-black-forest-cake-whipping-up-low-fat-cream-into-submission.html Swiss version of black forest gateau]

Oh, damn. here.

Can you use Toblerone as a decoration? Also the Swiss (in my DSiS's part anyway) really like the sweet chestnut filling for cakes. My DC have found out to their cost that they have to ask whether something is really chocolate

Ooh! Ace idea. And I would be tempted to buy something which could also be seen as almost literally opening a can of worms...

How about a Gugelhupf which you could decorate or fill , apple strudel or chocolate mousse made with Lindt dark chocolate

Hmm, so Swiss gugelhupf decorated with tablet and Toblerone, and maybe with dried raspberries inside?

Don't think I ever saw a Swiss person eat a toblerone tbh.

Is Guglhupf Swiss or Austrian? I lived in French speaking part of ch so not sure.

We had a lot of moelleux au chocolat, crêpes, crème caramel, tarte au pommes etc

What about a Swiss trifle? Cranachan and white chocolate would go well together.

C'est moi, btw.

Hello! Friend is from Engelberg. I don't even know what language they speak.

Have to transport it from Fife to Northumberland, so not sure trifle would cope. And I kind of want it to be a cake. Hmm. Even the damn hairy bikers have missed out Switzerland.

Have you moved, btw? Could you not be MaTunnocks now?

Maybe combine the cake with a chocolate fondue to dip it into?

Can you do fondue without a fondue set?

Yes, moved a couple of months ago.

Engelberg suggests German speaking area.

Black Forest def German.

I think the alpine cuisine is quite similar,
Whether in ch, Austria or Germany actually. Strudel, Apfelkuchen ...

Oh, so it does! Why didn't I think of that?

You need a little burner otherwise the choc will not stay warm. Unless you eat very fast.

Problem is that most alpine cakes are quite stodgy (apple streusel or strudel for example) and rasps are quite light and would be overwhelmed.

What about meringue du gruyere with rasps?

I am making meringues for pudding, so I guess that's appropriate. I think I need Swiss elements in a basic cake. Maybe I'll just make it into a cuckoo clock!

DD and I have just made him some fantastic tablet as a present.

I doubt you'd get gruyere cream but this is utterly delicious

YUM

Oh my. Do you need a paramedic on standby?

Yes. They sell them with a defi-thingy-that-they-use-on-ER

STAND CLEAR!

DH just on phone. He suggested a deep-fried Swiss roll. I am so tempted...

TheEternalOptimist I'd forgotten about the lovely meringues and grueyere double cream, shame you can't get vin cruit here either. That's my favourite when I visit DSiS I just buy them all and don't bother with bowls just open and dip in .

There is a particular cheese from Engelberg although I doubt you'd get it here. It is a German speaking resort near Lake Lucerne.

You could always get the cheese shop in St Andrews to make a cheese cake (ie. a cake made of cheeses). I'm sure they do one.

I bought some delicious Tomme there recently. You can't buy many Swiss cheeses (aside from gruyere and more popular ones) in uk.

Well, in the end I went for tacky and simple - a cuckoo clock cake decorated with caramel wafers, tunnocks teacakes and macaroon bars. It looks quite good! Thanks for all help.

My mother is Swiss. We always used to have carrot cake for birthdays.

Let me know what you're looking for - I have a Swiss cakes book by Betty Bossi (that's kind of the Swiss cook book line) lying around somewhere. Would be happy to look it up.