FRESH warm croissants for breakfast are a rather special treat.

These should be crunchy on the outside and soft in the middle and are best eaten without extra butter or jam.

French chef John Letzter of Belle Epoque in Fortitude Valley serves his morning batch straight from the oven
at 7.30am.

On some mornings, queues of francophiles can be found waiting for their fix.

These are quite small, especially when compared with the big spongy things that pass for croissants in Australia. But quality is the key here.

Letzter uses Isigny Ste Mere butter from Normandy which has an 82 per cent fat content and produces the crisp texture he wants.

He arrived at Belle Epoque in mid-December and makes the traditional pastries on sale at the neat little patisserie next to the ornate Paris-style brasserie which opened in the Emporium last year.

Baking is Letzter's passion and he learnt his trade in Strasbourg in the early 1990s working for Thierry Mulhaupt, a noted French pastry chef and chocolatier. Since then, he has worked in Paris, Switzerland, Monaco and in Brisbane where he was sous and pastry chef at Il Centro in the CBD.

Belle Epoque co-owner Tony Harper loves the "shortness" of Letzter's pastry, which is crumbly and rich with butter.

His fillings are not too sweet. An apricot meringue we tried was light and generous with natural fruit flavour. Same goes for the strawberry and pear fruit tarts dressed with a pectin glaze.

Also eye-catching are the financier (almond meal) cakes with toppings of pine or pistachio nuts.

For something a little more decadent, we liked the Paris Brest which is a wheel-shaped puff with praline cream and choux pastry.

Letzter makes some of the desserts served in the brasserie next door.

Among the highlights are a warm chocolate tart with orange jelly and a creme brulee. Patrons can also select pastries from a trolley which does the rounds of the spacious eatery.

The chef is obviously enjoying himself at Belle Epoque and has a few new ideas on the go.

He will be soon be selling his own jams and curds from the patisserie.

Belle Epoque is Shop 60, 1000 Ann St, Fortitude Valley (ph: 3852 1500).

 

Lavosh crispbread: Sydney food identity Rachel Grisewood has been busy lately, releasing some new lavosh crispbreads.

Her Sydney Biscuit Company makes a slightly convex cracker that looks good and holds a dip or filling rather well.

The sea salt lavosh is a nice touch but we went for the nigella seed variety.

The seed is native to southwest Asia and goes by a variety of names including roman coriander and black caraway. It actually tastes a bit like cumin.

Look for the lavosh at IGA stores and delis around town.

 

Gluten-free muffin: One of the big challenges for gluten-free cooks is to make an acceptable savoury muffin. Gluten in strong wheat flours provides elasticity and a good crumbly texture. A straight substitution of gluten-free flour makes for a dense and dry product.

Melinda Trembath of Melinda's gluten-free goodies has been experimenting and has come up with a muffin that is moist and tasty. The trick, she says, is less flour and more cheese and vegetables. She uses carrot, zucchini and sun-dried tomatoes which give a nice golden colour.

Another new product is an iced pecan slice which is right up there with her exceptional carrot cakes.

Her products are widely available round Brisbane. Check out the website.

 

Source: couriermail.com.au