After working in the kitchens of Jean-George Vongerichten and Thomas Keller, Jennifer Yee challenged herself to make a plant-based croissant. She says the third time was a charm and she was well on her way to conquering butterless pastry.
After a stint at Konbi, Yee opened Bakers Bench in Far East Plaza, where she sells plant-based baked goods alongside buttery counterparts. Managing her own schedule, quality of life became an ingredient for balance. Yee admits, "I always felt like if I just put in my time and I just worked at the hardest kitchens I could get myself into and get them on the resume, eventually it would pay off.”
Depending on the product, Yee uses two different butter substitutes, but veers away from using substitutes for ingredients like eggs. She concedes that cookies have been her biggest hurdle. "Fat and flour don’t really take to each other naturally. You’re trying to force so much fat into the flour sometimes it will emulsify or split, the oil will leach out. If there’s too much fat, there will just be one large puddle. If there’s not enough, they’ll be rock hard. There’s not a lot of versatility when you’re coming to the building blocks of it.”
Yee will be joined by artist Stacy Michelson, Justine Hernandez of Just What I Kneaded, and Zen Ong of Awan to judge the vegan category of KCRW’s Good Food PieFest & Contest. What is she looking for? A flaky crust with a firm bottom and a flavorful filling.
Jennifer Yee says she turns to food scientist Harold McGee when baking without animal products. Photo by Alexis Gross.