Baozi Xishi's Struggle

Everyone looked at it for a while, and they were all amazed by the beautiful flower cake. No one spoke for a long time.

After a while, Xiao Liuzi spoke cautiously: "Miss Shen, this is really a flower cake made of flour, not real peach or pomegranate?" As he said that, he was about to reach out to touch the pink peach in front of him.

"Pah!" Chef Lu reached out and knocked down the claw that was reaching for the flower cake, then turned to Shopkeeper Fan and said, "Shopkeeper, if this kind of flower cake is made, it will definitely win the prize this year. Shall we make this kind of flower cake this year?"

Shopkeeper Fan was also very satisfied and nodded with a smile: "Miss Shen, just make it according to the appearance of this flower cake. The boss will definitely be happy when he sees it."

"In previous years, the flower cakes were all 16 inches in size. We don't have enough ingredients in our kitchen to make one this big. Please make a list and I'll have someone go out to buy them. You don't have to make the silver thread noodles and five-blessing flower cakes tomorrow. Just focus on making this flower cake. Make sure it's ready before sunset tomorrow. The host's carriage will deliver it to Guangning Temple overnight."

"I will send someone to the county town to report to the boss and get the candied dates and lotus seeds that the boss's wife prepared. It won't delay your production tomorrow."

Having said that, he hurried out.

The rest of the group of people surrounded Chef Lu and said, "The flower cake is ready, but it's so small and there's only one. It's not easy to serve it to the guests. Can we share it? It smells really sweet."

Chef Lu waved his hand cheerfully: "Let's share. I want to taste this beautiful flower cake too. When you share, don't forget to leave a portion for the shopkeeper."

The guys cheered, and Xiao Liuzi took a knife and carefully cut it into small pieces.

From time to time, the waiters would remind me: "Hey, don't cut the petals crookedly." "I want to try whether the peach is really just a flower cake."

The flower cake is soft and sweet in the mouth. Because it is a small size trial, there are not too many ready-made fillings, and the date paste filling is only added in a symbolic thin layer, but the taste is not affected by the small amount of filling.

Snowflake sugar powder is added when kneading the dough, and it is kneaded until it is smooth and flexible. The parts of the flower cake that are not filled with stuffing are also very sweet and delicious. It is not like the flower cakes I have eaten before. The parts with stuffing are very sweet when you take a bite, but the ones without stuffing taste like pure white flour steamed buns.

"Miss Shen, this flower cake is not only beautiful, but also tastes sweet. No wonder the whole house is filled with sweet smells when it is steamed."

"Yes, yes. When I came to get the food, I was drooling at the smell. I was wondering what delicious food this was. I have never smelled anything like this before."

The flower cake was not big, so after leaving a portion for Shopkeeper Fan, the rest was quickly divided up, with each person finishing it in just a few bites.

They smacked their lips with a sense of unsatisfied satisfaction, but had no choice but to disperse and go about their own business.

Shen Yu cleaned up the tools on the noodle table, and remembering the list of ingredients that Manager Fan had asked her to make, she hurried to find the accountant, Mr. Wu.

She had never planned to write the list herself from the beginning. Most of the women in the village could not write. She had never heard Yutao mention whether the original owner could write or not. She probably could only trace embroidery patterns.

In modern times, she had a difficult situation as a child and had no chance to practice calligraphy. She could only hold the brush like a fountain pen, and she was not sure she could write beautifully.

After she came here, she saw that the characters were all traditional Chinese characters. She could barely recognize them, let alone write them. It was better for her to find someone to write for her.

After hearing Shen Yu's request, Mr. Wu readily agreed. He immediately took a blank piece of accounting paper, spread the paper, dipped it in ink, and made a list according to what Shen Yu said.

Shen Yu watched with admiration and couldn't help but praise: "Mr. Wu, you really write fast and well."

Mr. Wu smiled brightly when the child praised his shorthand regular script in an admiring tone.

After the ink dried, Shen Yu handed the list to Manager Fan and went back to the kitchen to take care of his own work.

The next day, Shen Yu got up early on purpose. When the sun just rose and Manager Fan came to the kitchen with a strange waiter, the silver thread noodles needed for the day were already ready.

At this time, all the ingredients listed on the list have been delivered to the kitchen.

Shopkeeper Fan was surprised to see the cut silver noodles spread out to dry. He was very satisfied and felt that he had really found a treasure.

This Miss Shen has good craftsmanship, is hardworking, and is quick and sharp-eyed at work. I secretly thought that when I give out red envelopes for the Mid-Autumn Festival, I must talk to my employer and give Miss Shen a bigger one.

The waiter handed a two-layer food box to Shen Yu and stepped aside.

It turned out that this was the waiter sent by the boss's wife to deliver candied dates and walnut kernels. He would not go back immediately after delivering the candied dates and walnut kernels, but would wait in the restaurant to rest. When the flower cakes were ready and packed in boxes in the evening, he would be responsible for driving the horse-drawn carriage to Guangning Temple overnight.

The candied dates are made with the finest rock sugar. They are small and uniform in size, crystal clear and soft in color, and you can tell at first glance that much thought was put into their production.

Each walnut kernel is in perfect shape and can fill up an entire food box.

Shen Yu knew that this flower cake was related to the boss's reputation and the sincerity of offering to Buddha, so he was particularly careful when making it.

Because the dough needs to be fermented for a sufficient amount of time before it can be used, and the flower cakes are large in size, they need more time to ferment.

She roughly estimated the time and amount of dough needed to make the flower cake, and started kneading the dough yesterday afternoon. She covered it with a thick cloth and set it aside to rise. In the evening, she kneaded it again and added some more dough before returning to the courtyard to rest.

When I woke up this morning, I saw that the dough had risen just in time.

It is made in the same way as yesterday's flower cake, except that it is twice as big, and is more time-consuming and laborious, so it is much slower to make. The only difference is that yesterday's date paste filling was a very thin layer, while today's is full of fillings.

By the time Shen Yu finally finished making the flower cake, he and Chef Lu worked together to put the flower cake into the largest steamer in the kitchen, covered it with a large round lid and started steaming it. It was already noon and Xiao Liuzi had already prepared the rice dumplings.

After watching the flower cakes being put into the steamer and telling the time for the heat, Shen Yu felt tired. She had never made such a large cake or jujube flower cake before.

Maybe because he was too tired from work in the morning and too hungry, Shen Yu didn't feel hungry at all. He ate something in a hurry, then moved a small stool and sat by the stove, fearing that the food would be over-steamed and lose its shape.

As the timer incense stick became shorter and shorter, the whole kitchen was filled with the sweet aroma of cakes and pastries.

When the time is up, turn off the fire, let it simmer for a while at the residual heat, take off the lid, let the heat dissipate, and a beautiful plate of big flower cake will appear.

It was not until he saw the steamed flower cake had beautiful color and shape that Shen Yu finally let go of his worries and a smile broke out on his face.

Chef Lu and Chef Chai were also sweating for her. For the same ingredient, it was much more difficult to control the heat when cooking large ones than small ones. If the ingredients were deformed during steaming, Miss Shen would have a hard time explaining herself and might even be kicked out.

Having been immersed in the kitchen for a long time, although they are not very good at making pasta, they know the tricks by heart.

They didn't tell anyone when the flower cake was not yet steamed because they were afraid of scaring Miss Shen. If she got it wrong while making it, it would be their fault.

He helped Shen Yu lift the steamer down, carefully took out the flower cake and placed it on a small table to cool.

After the flower cake has cooled, its color becomes darker and its surface has an oily luster. At first glance, it looks like it is carved out of jade and is very beautiful.

After putting the cake in a large food box specially used for holding flower cakes and wrapping the bottom of the box with a thick soft cushion, the waiter carried it carefully and went out.

Shopkeeper Fan stood at the door of the restaurant and watched the waiter drive away slowly in the carriage. He then looked up at the setting sun which had not yet set and finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Miss Shen's flower cakes are made beautifully and quickly, and they are successful on the first try. She has plenty of time and is able to pack them in boxes and send her employees off before sunset. This time, the honey-giving flower cakes will surely be delivered earlier than those of other restaurants.

Unlike last time, the top layer of the steamed cake was a little deformed. There was nothing I could do but to remedy the situation by redoing the smallest layer.

By the time the cakes were packed and shipped, it was already three in the morning and it was dark. They were also afraid that if they drove too fast the cakes would be damaged. I heard that the ceremony would begin when the cakes were delivered, and the boss was really angry that time.

When Shopkeeper Fan saw that the waiter had disappeared, he returned to the kitchen and said to the people in the kitchen, "The boss said that tomorrow's Sutra Drying Ceremony is a grand Buddhist event, so the restaurant will be closed for a day. Anyone who wants to go to Guangning Temple should report it. We will gather at the restaurant at 3:00 pm tomorrow. We will hire a carriage to take you there, and we will return together in the evening. We have been busy and hard for half a year after the New Year, so everyone should get some blessings and pray for good health."

Hearing this, the guys cheered.