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London, United Kingdom
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Sunday 19 February 2012

Into the snow... with a lovely full tum!!

Zermatt and the Matterhorn



If you have been looking for the ultimate skiing holiday experience then look no further than Switzerlands finest luxury chalet specialists Mountain Exposure. www.mountainexposure.com

Having just come to the end of a week in the quintessentially Swiss resort of Zermatt, MX as it is known to the locals, is never shy of delivering the most delicious valley wine, cullinary wizardry morning, noon and night.
You would be a fool to go anywhere else...

So there are a number of ways to get here, but the most scenic and easily the most exciting is the train. Swiss trains are rarely late, the connections run from all major airports be it Geneva, Zurich (the most popular) Basel or even Milan, they are all equidistant. My train ride up was a little on the overcast side, but still, loads to look at and take in and some sheer landscapes if I ever did see some!


Man asleep on the train, sadly missing out on the fabulous view up the valley

This week I was looking after eight guests in Chalet Pollux, the most beautiful traditional yet modern Alpine designed Swiss chalet, set in the Zermatt hillside overlooking the valley with a view of the Matterhorn from the numerous balconies or the hot tub on the ground floor.

Five star luxury doesn't come without a colossal breakfast to kick start the day and what a fabulous feast, from eggs benedict to local dried hams, salami's, cheeses and yoghurt, cereals, fresh baguette, croissants, pain au chocolat, fruit, pancakes, and then off on to the slopes for a day on the pistes.

It was the menu that particularly interested me in this instance, I was paired with Theo,


Mountain Exposures finest Greek chef whose origins shine through in each dish with his love for dill, oregano and thhyme creates a signature that none other could beat!
Having eight peple to cater for each day really sparked the imagination and I found myself snapping away at the delicious treats that Chef Theo was making, and utterly blown away by the food this week, I decided to don my notebook and pen and learn properly how the 5 star chefs do it!



Evening menu: 
Three canapes, one fish, one meat and one vegetable to accompany Champagne at 7pm.
Starters served at around 7.30.
Local wines red/white to be served throughout 
Main course, dessert, cheese and then coffee/tea.
....and for those who can brave the hangover in the morning, a light digestif to round it all off.

Mountain air being the best hangover cure so... bottoms up!

Poached lobster in a saffron sauce with salmon caviar

Mushroom and mascarpone sushi sprinkled with paprika

Chef Theo prepares the mains...

Fillet of beef in a poivre sauce with caramelised onion and leek salad, pureed gruyere potatoes and broccoli.

Vanilla yoghurt mousse with a strawberry coulis and crunchy caramel garnish
Just on the last run down before going back to work and the sun dipped behind the Matterhorn creating these almost double vision rays of light. Utterly stunning and a real treat to see such natural beauty!

 It happened to be valentines day in the middle of all this so Theo made some heart shaped strawberry jam biscuits for tea and dusted then lightly with icing sugar! Mmmm! Perfect hunger quencher for a hard day up the hill!

Shrimp, avocado and yoghurt shot
Baby tomato and mozerella kebab and ham salad tartines (in the background)
Mixed crab on a sauteed soy vegetable salad


VENISON TO FOLLOW and then the most fantastic Vacherin which exploded all over the plate and made a very happy cheese course for all to enjoy!

Vacherin cheese with fig chutney (left) and strawberry jam (right) served with grapes


A much needed ski after all that lot the following morning, so after breakfast and all our chores, I took the Gornergrat train from lift from Findelbach (bad ewather had closed the Furi/Riffleberg lifts so had to walk to the train round the corner, and when I got there there was no one there, and I saw a brilliant photo opportunity in this station mirror...


View from Furi on the Klien Matterhorn side, bad weather creeping in up the valley




 Seabass on a celeriac mash with tomatoes and asparagus followed by a fruit pot drizzled in white chocolate sauce.


The Matterhorn looked particularly postcard-esque the next day so up I went, camera in hand ready to snap some RIDICULOUS outfits on the piste! Look what I found!

Alice, 25, neon addict... Top look!

There she is again, showing us how it is done! (View from the Sunnega side of the mountain looking the entire lenth of the village!)

We stopped off en route for a quick bite and found some grazers...

Last train ride up to then go down...

Henu Stall  apres ski bar... for those who understand carneage... Where did I leave my skis?
That old cry!





...to be continued....

1 comment:

Marilyn said...

The place to be for excellent skiing, great treats and loads of fun.
Great shooting Chloe, brilliant reportage. Well done! Keep up the great work.