Chapter 21, The 21st Inn: Lotus Pastry

After choosing a spot by the stream, Song Shi directed his page to set up the food bed and then took the food from the food box and placed it on the food bed.

The moment the golden minced fish was served, it caught Song Shi's eye. The fish meat, as thin as cicada wings, bloomed like peonies on the porcelain plate, with specks of emerald green like dragonflies skimming the water. The golden minced fish on the plate shone on the fish like the rising sun, and through the transparent fish meat, one could almost be burned by its brilliant color.

When Song Shi saw the fish sashimi that looked like a painting, he couldn't help but swallow. It was Lin Hui's exclamation that snapped him out of his daze.

Lin Hui directed his page to serve all the dishes and then called out to everyone, "Hurry up and sit down. Fish sashimi tastes best when it's fresh; it won't taste good if it sits for too long."

Song Shi quickly picked up his chopsticks and reached for the sashimi. The sashimi was sliced ​​so thinly and translucently that it seemed as if one could see through the flesh and into the view on the other side. The glistening fish, dipped in golden orange sauce, burst with a sweet and slightly sour flavor in his mouth.

The raw fish is fresh, tender, and smooth, with a firm and refreshing texture. By the end, all that's left on your lips is a cool sensation, thanks to the refreshing aroma of mint.

This sashimi dish makes one marvel at the freshness of the fish; no wonder so many people love to eat sashimi.

Song Shi reached out quickly, and everyone at the table except Xie Yan, who didn't like raw fish, ate the plate of lifelike peony-shaped raw fish clean.

After finishing his meal, Lin Hui was still complaining about the plate, saying, "This portion is too small. I could eat a whole bigger plate."

Song Shi also looked like he hadn't had enough. He nodded and said, "It is indeed a bit small, but the fish used to make sashimi is also very particular. Perch is the best, followed by mandarin fish. Crucian carp has delicious meat, but unfortunately it has a lot of bones, so the person making the fish needs to have excellent knife skills."

"It's not the season when sea bass is at its best, so it's a blessing that Lady Yun was able to find one."

Luo Man wiped her mouth, smiled and nodded, saying, "Moreover, Sister Yun's knife skills are excellent, much better than mine. I can't slice fish so thinly."

Upon hearing Luo Man's words, Song Shi disagreed, saying, "Yun Niangzi's knife skills are indeed superb, but Luo Niangzi's are not bad either. I love eating the mutton you cook."

Luo Man ignored him and picked up a piece of steamed pork with rice flour. The oily and tender meat made her eyes squint as soon as it entered her mouth. The meat, with its alternating layers of fat and lean meat, melted in her mouth. The sweet and sticky rice flour, combined with the sweetness of the meat, made her want to have a bowl of rice right away.

"Sister Song, try this, it tastes delicious too."

Song Xuan glanced at the steamed pork with rice flour, frowned, and said, "I don't like fatty meat."

Luo Man highly recommended, "It's not greasy at all. You'll know once you try it. The mugwort at the bottom is also delicious. It doesn't have any bitter taste at all; you can only taste its refreshing fragrance."

Song Xuan hesitated for a long time before taking a bite. Just as Luo Man had said, it was delicious. She quickly finished a piece and said, "Yun Niangzi's cooking skills are indeed remarkable."

Looking at the few pieces of steamed pork left, Song Shi said, "This dish is best served with rice. I really should have come to find Lady Yun sooner."

While the group was enjoying their meal, Yunyin was preparing the ingredients for lotus flower pastries.

Lotus flower pastry is a famous traditional Chinese dessert, known for its lotus flower shape, with petals blooming layer by layer, and its crispy and fragrant taste.

The process is complex, and the preparation of the flaky pastry is a crucial step in creating the layered, blooming petals.

Mix the low-gluten flour with lard until smooth, knead into a dough, and let it rest for a while. In Da Zhao, unlike modern times, low-gluten flour is not readily available. Yun Yin needs to go through a step to use low-gluten flour: steaming it in a pot. The resulting flour is low-gluten flour.

After making the oil-based dough, the next step is to make the water-based dough. For the water-based dough, you don't need to use cake flour; all-purpose flour will suffice.

Pour in flour, lard, sugar, and red yeast rice powder, add water and knead into a dough, then set aside to rest.

Red yeast rice powder is used to adjust the color, so that the petals will appear pink. If you don't have red yeast rice powder, you can use dragon fruit juice instead, but Yunyin naturally doesn't have dragon fruit juice. Fortunately, the color of red yeast rice powder is also very beautiful.

Divide the rested dough and oil-based dough into small portions. Wrap the oil-based dough with the water-oil dough, roll it out, and fold it repeatedly to create layers. Let the wrapped dough rest for a while longer, then wrap the filling inside and shape it into a ball. Make three cuts on the top of the ball, deep enough to reach the filling, so that the dough forms six petals.

The filling can be either red bean paste or coconut flakes. Since I made a lot of red bean paste when making qingtuan before, I just used red bean paste this time.

Now, pour oil into the pot. When the oil is about 30% hot, put the dough in a strainer and fry it slowly in the pot until the petals open and the layers are distinct. Then take it out and the lifelike lotus pastry will appear before your eyes.

Place the blooming lotus-shaped pastries on a white porcelain plate. In summer, you can add lotus flowers as a garnish, which will make the whole plate of pastries even more fresh and elegant. Yunyin used other ingredients to carve and paint, making this pastry like a painting.

Yunyin prepared a plate of the pastries and had Shou'er deliver them to Song Shi and the others. She also fried the remaining lotus flower pastries, plated them, and sent them to Fu Wang.

When Yunyin was frying lotus flower pastries, Fu Wang was captivated. Watching the lotus flowers take shape, his eyes were filled with amazement.

Upon receiving the lifelike lotus-shaped pastry, Fu Wang hesitated to destroy it. He stared at it for a long time before Yun Yin urged him to take a bite. It was sweet and crispy, and when he bit into it, the layers of petals fell into his mouth, as if a blooming lotus flower was melting in his throat.

The sweetness of the red bean paste is the finishing touch; by the end, all that's left is a delightful sweet aroma.

After finishing a lotus-shaped pastry, Fu Wang was still in a daze for a long time. He sighed and said, "After eating Yun Niangzi's pastries, I'm afraid the pastries I sent you won't be presentable anymore."

"Lotus flower pastry, lotus flower pastry, eating it is like eating the whole summer."

Hearing his praise, Yunyin smiled so much that her eyes narrowed. Lotus flower pastries are actually not difficult to make, but they are very complicated. They need to form layers of petals, and controlling the oil temperature is also very important. If any part is not done well, the petals will not take shape.

Fortunately, Yunyin had made this dessert more than once and had already mastered it. She handed Fu Wang a cup of tea and said, "A cup of tea with this dessert will taste even better."

Fu Wang looked at the tea leaves rising and falling in the teacup. It was completely different from the tea they usually drank. He took a small sip. The bitterness of the tea diluted the sweetness in his mouth, but the aftertaste was still sweet. It was indeed a perfect match.

He sipped his tea and ate lotus-shaped pastries, and the two of them sat quietly, enjoying the pleasant time.

A gentle breeze swept across the fields, creating soft ripples on the stream. A few people by the stream had finished their lunch and were chatting and drinking tea.

Song Shi stood close to Luo Man, introducing her to the delicacies he had eaten in the past, while Song Xuan whispered to Xie Yan about poetry. Only Lin Hui stared blankly at the leisurely fish in the play.

Just then, Shou'er placed the food box on the cleaned food bed. Lin Hui, who had been in a daze, exclaimed in surprise, "My God, it's so beautiful!"

Layer upon layer of lotus blossoms unfold before my eyes. Although it is springtime, it feels as if I have arrived in summer when the lotus flowers are in full bloom.

Song Xuan was interrupted by Lin Hui's exclamation. She quickly turned around and saw the lifelike lotus swaying in front of her.

She was also captivated by the layers of lotus-shaped pastries that looked just like real lotus flowers. It took her a while to come to her senses. She murmured, "This looks like a picture of lotus flowers in summer. If it weren't still spring, I would have thought they were real lotus flowers."

Luo Man was also amazed by the lotus flowers, but she was only surprised for a moment before she came to her senses. She had felt that Yun Yin was extraordinary before. After tasting the golden minced fish, and seeing this plate of dessert, she was even more certain that Yun Yin was indeed extraordinary.

Song Shi wasn't as surprised as they were. Having seen the golden minced fish sashimi that resembled blooming peonies, the lotus flower pastry that looked like a real lotus flower no longer aroused his shock. He just thought that she was indeed worthy of being called Lady Yun. Even if he said she knew how to cook imperial cuisine, he probably wouldn't be surprised.

Song Shi picked up a piece of food with his chopsticks and placed it on Luo Man's plate, saying, "Try it. Lady Yun has been so hospitable today, so we should savor it carefully so as not to disappoint her kindness."

The group nodded in agreement. Even Xie Yan, who hadn't been impressed by the sashimi before, had to admit that the cooking skills were already superb.

Shou'er took away the tea from the food bed and brought out several new cups of tea, saying, "Lady Yun said that tea tastes even better with snacks. Why don't you gentlemen and ladies try some?"

Song Shi took the teacup, took a sip, and frowned slightly, saying, "It's so bitter."

He quickly picked up a lotus-shaped pastry and ate it; the sweet pastry instantly overwhelmed the lingering bitterness.

Everyone else tasted it, and all of them had bitter expressions on their faces, except for Xie Yan, who squinted slightly and said, "It tastes good, with a unique flavor."

Song Shi shook his head repeatedly and said, "I don't like it. Brewed tea is much better. This is just bitter. If it weren't for the sweetness of the snacks, all I would have left in my mouth would be bitter right now."

Luo Man and Song Xuan agreed, saying, "We really aren't used to it; the brewed tea has a much richer flavor."

The group chatted and laughed, and soon finished the whole plate of lotus flower pastries. Song Shi felt he hadn't had enough, so he stood up and said, "I'll go ask Lady Yun if there are any more of these pastries."

Song Xuan looked at the empty plate and said, "I'll go too."

Song Shi glanced at his younger sister and asked, "What are you going to do?"

Song Xuan lowered her eyes and said timidly, "I just want to talk to Lady Yun."

The two walked through the fields to the shade in front of the food stall. Looking at Fu Wang, who was still drinking tea, Song Shi murmured, "Why is he still here?"

Hearing the commotion, Fu Wang turned around and met Song Shi's curious gaze. He nodded slightly, and seeing that the group seemed to have something to say, he stood up and bid farewell to Yun Yin, saying, "Then, Miss Yun, we'll see you tomorrow."

Lady Yun nodded and said, "Yes, take care, Young Master Fu."

After seeing Fu Wang off, Yunyin asked Zhang Lin to tidy up the table and then asked the two of them, "Is there something you need?"

Song Shi plopped down and looked at the plate of pastries that had been taken away, saying, "Miss Yun, you're not being fair. There are so many of us and we only have one plate of pastries, but Master Fu ate a whole plate by himself. Don't be so biased."