Alpine Macaroni - Älplermagronen - "Swiss Mac and Cheese"

This traditional Swiss dish was invented by the Swiss Alpine People (The Sennen or Älpler; I will call them Älpler from now on).

The Älpler take care of cows during the summer and uses the milk to make cheese and butter.

Life was not easy in the old days, as food had to be transported by foot up the steep alps. 

In 1882, when the Gotthard Tunnel was opened, Italian workers came to Switzerland and brought along their beloved pasta.

The Älpler immediately realized the value of pasta: light to carry and heavy on carbs.

Originally Älplermagronen was simply a mix of pasta and potatoes, cooked in cream and cheese over an open fire.

Cheap home-grown potatoes were added because pasta was expensive in those days.

This is how Älplermagronen are done in modern Switzerland:

You need

5-6 potatoes

250-300 g pasta

2-3 dl cream

150 g diced bacon

1-2 onions

1-2 cloves of garlic

grated cheese

one bouillon cube (beef or veggie)

dried onion

How to do it

Fry the diced bacon on low heat, add

chopped onions and garlic. 

Chop the peeled potatoes. 

(Keep the peel for a ManSalad;
- fry the peel in butter or 
immerse in olive oil 
and follow the recipe of 
crunchy parsley).

Let the potatoes boil for about 10 minutes in 0.5 litres of water with the bouillon cube and cream, then add pasta.

Let simmer until you get a creamy texture, then add the grated cheese to make it even more creamy.

Serve with applesauce and dried onion.

I do not know how or why applesauce made its way to this dish. William aka Wilhelm Tell perhaps?