YEAST SIR!

 It was former restaurateur, entepreneur and founder of YEAST Christophe Chatron-Michaud's search for good French breads to satisfy his cravings that led him and wife/MD Lissan Teh to open YEAST, Bangsar's latest French boulangerie (bakery), bistro and wine bar.

 Roping in artisan baker Christophe Gros all the way from France to produce traditional, rustic French breads using home-grown, natural yeast starter at their new venture, YEAST believes it will win discerning foodies over with their Bistronomy (Bistro + Gastronomy geddit?) concept.

You can't miss its bright sunny yellow facade that beckons invitingly to passersby to pop in and browse. Imagine the wonderful scent of freshly baked breads wafting out its typically French premise (sepia-toned posters, black&white floor tiles and cosy red banquette seating) every morning - yes, at the unearthly hours of 4 am whilst most of us are still cavorting with Mr Sandman, the artisan baker is already hard at work preparing our daily bread!

YEAST is ready to show how we can rustle up different meals from its wide variety of signature breads; from appetiser and starter to dessert too. Chatron-Michaud is even dabbling with the exciting possibility of pairing his hearty, crusty breads with local curries, spreads and fillings.

Priced from RM10 onwards, YEAST's signature breads include the traditional baguette, flaky crescents of croissants, gruyere cheese and smoked duck batard, cranberru batard and white chocoalate viennois. Toasted lightly and spread with just a little butter, they're perfect for a simple but tasty breakfast.

Come noon, roll up your sleeves for a speedy yet delicious lunch of smoked salmon sandwich, Nicoise salad or a slice of quiche Lorraine washed down with some roasted pumpkin soup with duck confit.

Tea calls for puffy croissants adorned with almond flakes, wickedly sinful Valrhona chocolate tart, warm almond and pear tart or the refreshingly tangy lemon meringue tart.

As the day turns dusky at sunset, you can seek solace in a bowlful of comforting boeuf bourguignon (tender braised beef short rib with red wine, root vegetable puree and crispy fried onion) or delicately seared salmon with creamed spinach and bearnaise sauce.

 

 Complement a glass of your favourite red or white wine (French of course!) with duck liver terrine with port-balsamic and fruit reduction on brioche toast or king prawns in puff pastry with tarragon-fennel bisque and ratatouille. Deeply flavourful yet light enough to keep growling tummies amply filled.

"Forget about stuffy rituals of French dining," urged Chatron-Michaud. "YEAST's convivial atmosphere welcomes you to discover the pleasures of classic comfort food that's freshly cooked right in our open kitchen."

YEAST seats up to 60 persons and will be opened Tues-Sun from 8 am to 6 pm. Bistro dinner menu available after 5 December 2012. Ample proof that men and women can live on breads alone...especially if they're oven-fresh from YEAST.

YEAST, 24, Jalan Telawi 2, Bangsar, KL. Tel: 03 2282 0118. www.yeastbistronomy.com

NUTS! IT'S A STICK-UP!

These simple, fail-proof recipes are easy to whip up and makes entertaining at home a real breeze!

Grilled Chicken Skewers with Yoghurt Dip

Serves 4 – 6 persons

1 pc Chicken Breast

1 stalk Lemongrass

1 tbsp Coriander Powder

1 tbsp Cumin Powder

½ tbsp Fennel Powder

Salt & pepper to taste

1 Red Capsicum

1 Slice Pineapple

3 sprigs Fresh Basil (optional)

2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Yoghurt Dip
1 cup Low-fat Yoghurt
3 sprigs Coriander
Juice from 1/2 Orange


Methods

1. Soak skewers for 1-2 hours in water.

2. Cut chicken breast into bite-size cubes. Bruise lemongrass stalks lightly.

3. Marinate chicken with spice powder, lemongrass, fresh basil, salt and pepper for 1-2 hours.

4. Remove seeds from capsicum. Cut capsicum and pineapple into 1cm dices.

5. Thread chicken cubes onto skewers alternating with capsicum and pineapple dices.

6. Lightly brush chicken skewers with oil. Grill skewered chicken for 15-20 minutes until thoroughly cooked.

7. Chop coriander finely. Whisk yoghurt with orange juice. Add in chopped coriander and stir evenly.

8. Serve chicken skewers dressed with yoghurt dip.

Chef's Tips:

Chicken can be substituted for your preferred choice of meat such as beef, lamb or duck.

Use your favourite combination of spices or herbs or both as marinade. The sky's the limit!

Instead of capsicum and pineapple, try tasty options like sweet potato, pumpkin, leek, shallots or any other vegetable or fruit that can withstand grilling.

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Almond Tuiles

• 100g granulated sugar
• 120g egg whites (approximately 4-5 egg whites)
• 5 ml vanilla extract
• 1g salt
• 1 Orange for its zest
• 45g flour
• 60g unsalted butter (melted)
• 100g almond flakes

1. Whisk sugar, egg whites and vanilla. Add in salt, orange zest and flour. Stir well to ensure no floury lumps in the mixture.
2. Line baking tray with parchment paper and brush melted butter thoroughly on it.
3. Drop teaspoon amounts of earlier blended mixture on the buttered paper.
4. Flatten into disk shapes using a fork dipped in butter.
5. Sprinkle almond flakes onto each disk.
6. Bake at 200°C until golden brown for about 8-10 minutes.
7. After cooling, place almond tuiles in a tight fitted container.

Chef’s Tip: Almond tuiles can be eaten on its own with coffee or tea or serve with ice cream or your favourite cream-based dessert.

BINGING ON BISCOTTI

I will never forget the first time I attempted to make biscotti. It was a disaster! Instead of achieving a light, slightly crunchy texture, everything ended up hard as rock. Only the flavour was agreeable but I was thankful that my Mom encouraged me not to give up. She also gamely finished the trial batch which I truly appreciate.

Happily, my subsequent attempt turned out better - thanks I suspect mainly to Rohani Jelani's recipe which appeared in a backdated issue of Flavours magazine. Having purchased several jars of Rohani's splendid biscotti before some years ago, I had never quite forgotten how nice they tasted. So I was estatic when I discovered her biscotti recipe! The results were so good, I actually made about a dozen canisters of them a week before Chinese New Year as pai nin giftaways. Not quite enough to go around so a small coterie of relatives and friends were the lucky beneficiaries.



For those who are game to try their hands at churning out a batch or two here's the recipe.

ROHANI'S ALMOND BISCOTTI

3 eggs (size A)
160 g caster sugar (the original recipe has it down as 200g but I used less)
1/4 tsp vanilla extract (you can also use real vanilla flecks scraped from 1 vanilla pod - the flavour is fab! It's pricey though as 3 pods cost RM20)
50g ground almonds
200g whole almonds (I use skinned almonds but again these tend to be slightly pricier. You can also use hazelnuts or pistachios or even a mixture)

Sift together
320g plain flour
1/4 tsp bicarbonate soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 160 degrees Celsius. Spread whole almonds onto baking tray and bake for 10-15 minutes. Cool thoroughly before using.

Stir ground almonds together with sifted flour. Then add in whole almonds and mix evenly. Divide mixture into three portions

Cream sugar, eggs and vanilla extract until light and frothy. Using a large sturdy spatula or metal spoon, fold each portion of the flour mixture into the egg and sugar batter. You should end up with a soft, sticky dough.

Dust your worktop, baking tray and hands with flour. Roll 1/4 of the dough mixture on the floured surface with your hands. Shape roughly into a log and place it onto the baking tray. Leave enough room in between for the dough to spread during baking.

Bake for 15 minutes. The logs should feel firm to the touch. If they are not, bake for another 5 minutes. After that, remove from oven and leave them to cool down.

Use a serrated knife to slice the logs thinly. Lay the slices on a clean, dry tray. Bake each side for 6-8 minutes depending on thickness. When done, remove and let the slices cool on a wire rack. Once cooled, be sure to store them in airtight containers.