RPAGF Chapter 118 Sweet to the Heart
Chapter 118 Sweet to the Heart
Chapter 118 Sweet to the Heart
Su Mu took the persimmons down.
This thing is overcooked; it's as soft as a water balloon, and you can pop it with just a little pressure.
"Don't rush, you can't just bite into this thing, or you'll get it all over your face."
Su Mu turned and went into the kitchen. A moment later, he came out holding a few freshly cut wheat straws.
That's dry wheat straw used for starting fires here; it's hollow inside.
He gently peeled off the persimmon stem, revealing the translucent flesh inside, and then inserted the cleaned straw straight in.
"Suck it while eating."
Su Mu squatted down and held the persimmon to the little ox's mouth.
The little ox blinked its eyes, leaned over, put the straw in its mouth, and sucked hard with its cheeks.
Slurp—!
A cool, creamy, and incredibly sweet liquid rushed into my mouth through the straw.
It has no astringent taste, only pure, sweet flavor.
That sweet, not-too-sweet feeling, with the unique refreshing quality of autumn, slid down her throat, making the little girl shiver with pleasure.
"So sweet!"
Little Sizi loosened the microphone tube, a ring of red persimmon juice smearing the corner of her mouth. She stuck out her pink little tongue and licked it, her eyes narrowing into slits. "Sister, try it! This fruit has sugar syrup inside!"
Li Lizhi looked at the limp persimmons and initially thought they were a bit unseemly, but seeing how much her younger sister was enjoying them, she couldn't resist taking one with a straw already inserted.
Take a light breath.
The pulp had turned into a quicksand-like sap; it melted on the tongue without needing to be chewed.
"These fire crystal persimmons are meant to be eaten by sucking them out."
Su Mu made one for himself, leaned it against a tree trunk, and sucked it dry in a few gulps, leaving only a thin layer of red skin. "This is called drinking the autumn wind."
In no time at all, the best persimmons at the top of the tree were devoured by the big one and the two little ones.
The remaining smaller ones, or those that were slightly bruised, filled a whole basket.
"What should we do with these?"
Li Lizhi looked at the pile and said, "It's a shame to throw it away."
"What are you throwing away? This is perfect for making desserts."
Su Mu carried the winnowing basket into the house, washed his hands, and peeled all the rotten persimmons.
The peeled fruit pulp is even redder. Place it in a ceramic basin, stir it a few times with a wooden spatula, and it becomes a basin of bright red fruit puree.
No water was added; the flour was poured directly into the fruit puree.
Half glutinous rice flour, half wheat flour.
Su Mu's technique was quick; in no time, the bowl of runny fruit puree was transformed into a smooth and soft orange-red dough.
Next comes the filling.
Crush the leftover walnuts from making mooncakes with the back of a knife, mix them with a jar of freshly pickled osmanthus sauce, and add a spoonful of lard.
The aroma of osmanthus and the oily fragrance of walnuts, stimulated by the lard, burst forth from the bowl.
"There's a trick to wrapping this."
Su Mu pinched off a piece of dough, flattened it in his palm, filled it with a large spoonful of filling, tightened his thumb and forefinger, sealed it with the opening facing down, and then gently pressed it down.
A round, plump, and adorable orange-yellow cookie dough is now ready.
Heat a frying pan and brush it with a thin layer of oil.
Put the dough into the pan.
Sizzle—!
A soft, rustling sound rang out as the orange-red dough puffed up rapidly upon contact with the hot oil.
Su Mu turned the heat down to the lowest setting. This stuff is high in sugar, and it's easy to burn if the heat is too high, so it has to be cooked slowly.
Before long, the caramelized sweetness overwhelmed the cool sensation of eating the persimmon earlier.
Li Lizhi sat on a small stool in front of the stove, holding a piece of firewood in her hand, and idly added it into the stove.
The firelight reflected on her face, making her usually dignified and noble face look more down-to-earth.
"Mr. Su."
Li Lizhi watched the persimmon cakes in the pot slowly turn golden and crispy, and said softly, "Sometimes I really don't understand."
Su Mu's spatula didn't stop; he flipped the persimmon cake over: "What don't you understand? Don't you understand why perfectly good fruit has to be deep-fried?"
"no."
Li Lizhi shook her head, her gaze falling on Su Mu's busy profile. "The imperial chefs in the palace are particular about the pomp and circumstance of their cooking."
But when it comes to you, even the scraps can be turned into a feast.
"These persimmons were perfectly fine to eat just now, why go through all this trouble, kneading the dough and making the filling?"
Su Mu picked out the fried persimmon cakes one by one and placed them on the draining rack.
The freshly baked pancakes are golden brown on both sides, slightly puffed up in the middle, and you can even see the flowing sugar filling inside.
"Because eating persimmons alone is too cooling and can upset your stomach."
Su Mu picked one up, blew on it to warm it up, and opened it directly.
A soft click.
The outer layer is crispy, the glutinous rice flour inside is soft and chewy, and the piping hot osmanthus and walnut filling slowly flows out, with an aroma that powerfully fills your nostrils.
"We'll see."
Su Mu handed half a pancake to Xiao Sizi, who was already drooling with envy, and then handed another one to Li Lizhi. "Life is already quite tough, especially in late autumn, it looks so bleak."
If we don't add a little sweetness to our lives and find ways to make ourselves happy, what's the point of living?
Li Lizhi took the scalding hot pancake and was stunned.
Life is too hard?
She was a high-ranking princess, living a life of luxury and being doted on by her father, the emperor. How could she possibly suffer?
But for some reason, hearing those words made me feel like something had gently bumped into me.
Those rules of the inner palace, those postures that had to be maintained at all times, those unspeakable frustrations—
She lowered her head and took a small bite.
The outer skin is so crispy it crumbles, while the inside is so soft and sticky it sticks to your teeth.
The scalding hot filling flooded her mouth, the crunchy aroma of walnuts, the rich sweetness of osmanthus, and the fruity fragrance of persimmons all mixed together, making her tongue tremble from the heat, yet she couldn't bear to spit it out.
sweet!
It was so sweet it warmed my heart.
"Be careful, it's hot."
Seeing that she was eating too quickly, Su Mu handed her a glass of warm water. "It's sweet and warm, so don't burn your lips."
Li Lizhi chewed the food in small bites, the sweetness slowly spreading in her mouth, and the inexplicable melancholy she had felt earlier was soothed by the warm pancake.
She looked up at Su Mu.
The man was leaning against the stove, holding a flatbread in his hand, eating it without any decorum, with bits of dough still stuck to the corner of his mouth.
What kind of person is he?
Despite being a menial servant, he dared to address the emperor as a brother; despite possessing great skills, he remained confined to this small imperial kitchen, tinkering with these dishes.
He said life was tough.
Did he have a very difficult life before?
"Mr. Su."
Li Lizhi swallowed the biscuit in her mouth and asked, almost as if possessed, "So, do you think it's sweet now?"
'
Su Mu paused.
He glanced at Xiao Sizi, who was munching on half a pancake with her face covered in smudges, and then at the bare old tree outside the door, which was adorned with several red lanterns.
Before he transmigrated, he was a chef at state banquets, so busy that he often couldn't even get a hot meal.
Even though there's no internet or electricity now, life is still...
"It's sweet."
Su Mu stuffed the last bite of the pancake into his mouth, patted the oil off his hands, and laughed carefree. "With people supporting me, cats—oh no, kids to pet, and these ready-made fire crystal persimmons to eat, how could it not be sweet?"
Little Sizi looked up, her mouth covered in osmanthus syrup, and mumbled as she held up half a pancake: "Sweet! Guoguo's are the sweetest! Seventy to ten thousand times better than that hard stone pancake!"
"Listen to this."
Su Mu pointed at the little girl, "This is what an expert's comment looks like."
Li Lizhi looked at the two figures, one big and one small, and couldn't help but burst out laughing.
That smile completely dispelled her usual aloofness, leaving only the radiant charm of a girl her age.
"really."
Li Lizhi held the remaining half of the cake in her hand; it was warm. "It tastes better than the pastries in the palace."
A gust of autumn wind swept past the door.
A few withered leaves twirled and fell, but they didn't evoke any sense of desolation.
The dilapidated backyard of the imperial kitchen, thanks to this pot of sizzling persimmon cakes, somehow managed to exude a springtime warmth even more than that of the Lizheng Hall.