Making Raclette without special equipment or specific type of cheese I have a sizable chunk of emmenthal cheese taking up valuable space in my fridge, and I was looking for a recipe to use it in. Drilling down into Swiss cuisine at wikipedia, I encountered an intriguing mention of Raclette, an apparently simple meal of 'scraped' hot cheese with various accompaniments. 

My questions are:
1. Is emmenthal an acceptable alternative to true raclette cheese?
2. I have no intention of going out and buying a specific 'raclette' gadget, so is there some sort of workaround using ordinary kitchen utensils that will allow me to recreate the traditional ralette experience (ie. scraping the edge of the cheese with a knife)?
I would recommend inviting your friends and family over for a cheese fondue party. Fondue requires a large amount of Emmental, so this should take care of your space issue. Also, Emmental is the perfect fondue cheese with its distinctly nutty flavor that complements the addition of dry white wine and Kirsch liqueur. 

http://RacletteChalet.com