Roasted Chicken Breast Stuffed With Real Welsh Cheese and Wrapped in Bacon!

Y Bistro first intrigued me in 1998 when reading a travel guide published by the Ninnau. This guide, compiled by Carole Woods lists restaurants, hotels, farmhouses, cottages and B and B’s together with other commercial establishments owned and operated by Welsh born folks - an added bonus if Welsh is spoken.

The Y Bistro listing in "Going Home – A Guide to Welsh Wales for the Overseas Welsh" just seemed to epitomize perfectly the goal of the guide, that of providing a good overall Welsh experience. What a big difference a real Welsh welcome can make!

Over the past few years, I have being following Y Bistro of Llanberis. Frankly, they have accumulated a multiplicity of awards and deservedly so. During my last visit to Wales in Spring 2002, time and geography did not allow for a trip to the restaurant. However, I did learn the Wales Tourist Board had selected this restaurant as the luncheon site for a sponsored travel writers program a little earlier in the same month – I am sorry I missed that one! However, it was certainly a nice feather in Y Bistro’s cap!

Although visiting Y Bistro has alluded me, I would unreservedly say the owners run a first class restaurant. This conclusion, reached from many different viewpoints, includes phone conversations with owners, descriptions and accounts of several other food writers, menu reviews and photographs. With this prospective in mind, it is expected Y Bistro would be a very pleasant Welsh dining experience.

Danny and Nerys Roberts, owners of Y Bistro, divide responsibilities with Danny being the congenial front of the house host and his wife, Chef Nerys preparing the superb fare. Their business, spanning twenty years, results in a very polished operation. Housed in a converted Victorian storefront, the restaurant offers a very warm inviting atmosphere. The Roberts also offer accommodations: two self-catering units and one en-suite (private bath) apartment.

We prepared one of the favorite dishes at Y Bistro; Cyw Iâr Chig Môch – Roasted Breast of Chicken Stuffed with Mature Welsh Cheddar Cheese, Roasted Red Bell Pepper, Oven Dried Tomatoes and Herbs, All Wrapped in Bacon. This dish is easily prepared and is so delightful it also works for any special occasion. Served with vegetables, it’s carb friendly! This is a culinary experience to repeat – tender, moist chicken fused with the flavors contrasts with crispy bacon, accompanied by melted herbed Welsh cheese speckled with flavorful pepper and tomato. The adapted recipe, provided by Chef Nerys Roberts, appears with this article.

Go to Y Bistro for friendly dining and experience excellence in cooking. Food is prepared simply but with creativity in taste and texture. Enjoy a delectable evening at good value dining prices. The menu is large enough to satisfy all tastes from meats to seafood to vegetarian. Most offerings are prepared from fresh local sources.

Main courses are almost always offered with one of Chef Nerys’ savory sauces or gravies. For example, Oen Eryri – Best End of Welsh Lamb Served on Potato Rosti with a Red Wine and Rosemary Sauce. They also offer the delicious Eidion Arfon - Welsh Black Beef Rib Eye Steak with Garlic, Port and Mushroom Sauce or a Creamy Pepper and Brandy Sauce. Y Bistro serves many Welsh foods for the traditionalist, who can resist the appetizer, Pwdin Gwaed Afal – Slices of Gently Fried Black Pudding with Creamy Apple and Cider Sauce?

Their dessert offerings are on par with the rest of the menu, featuring classics and homemade favorites. They range from Vanilla Crème Brûlée to Warm Apple, Raspberry and Cranberry Crumble Tart a la Mode. A Cheese Board of Welsh and other quality English and French cheeses is offered. Menu is in Welsh with English descriptions.

For more information on Y Bistro, visit their website: www.ybistro.co.uk, email – ybistro@fsbdial.co.uk. Tele from N. America 011 44 1286 871 278.

Note: "Going Home – A Guide to Welsh Wales for the Overseas Welsh", there are a limited number of copies of this guide available from Ninnau. Call 908 766-4151 or email ninnau@poboxes.com

An excellent food, restaurant and hotel reference guide just published for the first time this year is "Dining out in Wales 2004". Order on line: www.diningoutinwales.co.uk for £6.95 plus S&H., or pick up a copy on arrival at most book stores.

Ingredients:

Note: The quantities listed are approximate; adjust according to the size of the chicken breasts.

*Welsh Cheese:

The most  readily available Welsh Cheeses in North America are blended cheeses such as Red Dragon, Black Mountain, Harlech and Tintern made by Abergavenny Fine Foods and marketed by Somerdale. The base for these blends is a creamy Cheddar. Click Welsh Cheese for additional information!

Method:

Set oven temperature to 425F/220C/Gas Mark 7. In the meanwhile, prepare the chicken by cutting a pocket in the breasts, being careful not to pierce all the way through. Stuff the pockets with cheese, peppers, tomatoes and herbs spreading evenly.

Wrap the bacon rashers around each breast, in an overlapping fashion. Secure with toothpicks if necessary. Place chicken on a wire rack and roast for about 30 to 40 minutes. Time depends on size of chicken so check with small instant thermometer or better; insert a digital thermometer into the center of the breast prior to placing in oven. Cook chicken to 175F/79C. Serve at once with your favorite starch and vegetables! Yummy!

Note:. Since in North America, the bacon is much less lean and the preferred taste is crispy, you may wish to consider turning over the breast for the last 5 to 10 minutes of roasting.

Mwynhewch Eich Cyw – Enjoy Your Chicken!

Copyright © 2004 by Ken Thorne.