Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall turns chalet chef

The chalet chef not only has to deliver crowd-pleasing, tummy-filling feasts - he also has to clear the snowfall as well
Photograph: Beat Schweizer/Agency Anzenberger

Pancakes - the instant fix for hungry skiers - were allowed only at breakfast
Photograph: Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall/Guardian

The real food find was the fabulous cheese shop in Champéry - a proper little Swiss alpine town - which stocked an outstanding aged Gruyère
Photograph: Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall/Guardian

Successful ski cuisine has to deliver maximum starch with maximum taste. Polenta is a great starchy stuffer - try it with sauteed wild mushrooms
Photograph: Beat Schweizer/Agency Anzenberger

For a carbo load, you can't go wrong with tartiflette; while fondue is a bit like Christmas dinner - not necessarily the best meal of the year, but great fun
Photograph: Beat Schweizer/Agency Anzenberger

One of my two set pieces of the week was a bolito misto - a massive meat fest
Photograph: Beat Schweizer/Agency Anzenberger

Lunch is served on the terrace of Chalet les Beliers in Les Crosets
Photograph: Beat Schweizer/Agency Anzenberger

Feeding 10 hungry skiers every day is no big production if you work on the principle of minimum labour, maximum calories
Photograph: Beat Schweizer/Agency Anzenberger

Apple and prune pudding cake - serve it cold for afternoon tea or warm with lots of cream or custard
Photograph: Beat Schweizer/Agency Anzenberger

We tuck in with the Skeet family after a morning on the slopes
Photograph: Beat Schweizer/Agency Anzenberger

We've all agreed we'll be back - same families, same resort, same chalet, right opposite the Dents du Midi, a stunning Alpine ridge that catches the evening light
Photograph: Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall/Guardian