The $7 French Trader Joe’s Appetizer I’ve Been Serving for 5 Years Straight (It’s Perfect for a New Year’s Eve Party!)

While long winter nights might prompt you to stock up on all things peppermint, cranberry, and gingerbread, this season always manages to sing the siren song of a very different holiday-time item. Raclette! 

As I’ve said before, Raclette does something most other cheeses can’t do, in that it magically morphs from a noun into a verb: Not in the mood to mash those boiled potatoes? Raclette them! Have a last-minute dinner party on deck but no clue what to serve? Raclette it! How about grilled sausages, cornichons, and toasted bread? Raclette, raclette, and raclette again.

How did this love affair start? Well, what began as a fortuitous misdirect four years ago (my Trader Joe’s being out of Gruyère for a cheeseboard), turned into a new holiday tradition, that of hosting Raclette parties. As you’ll find, this cheese will dazzle at your holiday table. 

A semihard cheese made from the happy cows that hail from the French and Swiss Alps, Raclette cheese is named after the French verb “racler,” which means “to scrape.” To me, Raclette has a bit of funky ripeness and is nutty in a way that’s not dissimilar to its other alpine cousin, Gruyère.

If you’ve spent any amount of time on the internet, where melty cheese videos seem to always find me, you’ve likely seen wheels of Raclette being heated either over a grill or in a pan, then decadently waterfalled over any manner of savory foods (like pickles, cured meat, baguette, and boiled vegetables). Think of it like a reverse fondue, and you won’t be too far off, making it perfect for a well-planned Christmas dinner or lazy meal when you can’t stand to think of leftovers.  

Part of Raclette’s appeal, to me, is that you basically get to cosplay being a chef at Benihana, but located in a 1970s Swiss Chalet. Think: little grill pans or electric griddles on a table — one for all your accoutrements that are about to get a hot cheese blanket, like slices of vegetables, baguettes, and sausages and another to melt your cheese. On the side, it’s standard to have another of Raclette’s BFFs, i.e. tiny boiled potatoes, with plenty of perky little cornichon pickles and cocktail onions to cut through all that richness.

During this season, all I really want to do is three things:

1. Sit cross-legged with loved ones on a fuzzy carpet
2. Be near plenty of cheese
3. Have a companion for a crisp glass of Riesling

Raclette is the easiest way to get (and keep) everyone in a similar holiday spirit. It also makes for a kitschy little Christmas tradition I’ve yet to skip.

Find it in stores: Raclette, $6.99 for 8.8 ounces at Trader Joe’s 

What Trader Joe’s groceries do you stock up on for the holidays? Tell us about it in the comments below.

This post originally appeared on The Kitchn. See it there: The $7 French Trader Joe’s Appetizer I’ve Been Serving for 5 Years Straight (It’s That Good!)