Chapter Fifty-Eight Osmanthus Chestnut Cake
Liu Jiang took a bite of the chestnut rice and praised it repeatedly, saying, "It's really delicious, Xiaoyu, you should eat more."
The oily, sweet chestnuts paired with the savory, perfectly marbled Chinese sausage, and the refreshing shiitake mushrooms, along with the chewy, fragrant rice, made it truly irresistible. Xiaoyu, her mouth stuffed full, beamed with happiness, "Thank you, Mom and Dad."
The aroma wafted through the door into Aunt Cao's house, and Junjun, still drooling with desire, said, "Grandma, I want to eat this."
The aroma alone tells you it's from a small restaurant.
"Then you should eat your food first, okay? I'll take you to this restaurant for lunch this afternoon," Aunt Cao coaxed, serving Junjun the meal she had prepared.
Junjun hummed in agreement. Although he was a picky eater, he was the most well-behaved of all the picky children. He didn't like to eat because he was a bit picky. Grandma's cooking wasn't as good as the pretty lady's cooking at the small restaurant, but Grandma worked very hard to cook. Junjun brought the food to the door, and he felt that smelling the aroma outside made Grandma's cooking taste even better. He quickly finished the food, bite by bite.
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The two were still chatting when Li Youran looked at a travel guide for Yuncheng. After finishing it, she invited Yang Churuo, "Churuo, do you want to travel with me?"
After all, the photos Yang Churuo took of her brought her a lot of traffic, and she was truly grateful to Yang Churuo, who could be considered a benefactor in her life.
Yang Churuo leaned back in her chair. "Recently, a lot of people have asked me to take photos. There will only be more during the National Day holiday, but I don't have time."
“That’s true.” Li Youran continued to open her social media account. She was surprised to see 99+ messages every day. Private messages, comments, and likes were all over the place. In addition, many brands were looking to collaborate with her.
Yang Churuo posted a picture of what she ate that day on her social media, and soon many people were commenting.
[Just between you and me, I only follow photographer Yang for his food recommendations.]
Haha, me too! The food at this restaurant looks so delicious, I really want to try it!
【But I'm different. I want to eat, and I also want to have my picture taken by photographer Yang.】
This National Day holiday, I'm definitely not missing out on going to Yuncheng. I want photographer Yang to take some great photos of me, and I also want to eat at the small restaurants he recommends.
Yang Churuo felt a little embarrassed when everyone called her "Photographer Yang." Moreover, judging from the comments, she seemed to have become a restaurant food recommender.
Yang Churuo also responded to these netizens very warmly, welcoming them to take photos with her, to visit Yuncheng, and to eat delicious food at her small restaurant.
At the same time, Yunhe emerged from the high-speed rail station. She opened her video app and saw that the local search result had switched to Yuncheng, and the big data analytics were even pushing group-buying deals from Yuncheng to her, which she clicked "not interested."
As a food blogger, she has been in the food world for many years and has come to realize that if you want to eat truly delicious food, you have to ask the locals.
However, she was a bit tired and didn't feel like looking for something delicious, so she ordered takeout to the hotel.
After washing up, she felt much better. Yunhe started her live stream and ordered takeout.
In an instant, many familiar netizens joined the live stream.
[Luckily I just ate, otherwise I would have starved watching your livestream.]
[Xiao He, you're finally live! Do you know how much my stomach has missed you?]
[Daily mealtime video is here! What did Xiaohe eat today? I ate snail rice noodles.]
Yunhe is a restaurant review blogger, and more importantly, a food blogger. She mainly films videos of herself visiting restaurants and enjoying delicious food, which could be considered a mukbang (eating broadcast). People say she looks incredibly satisfied with her meals, and she has gained many fans because of this.
Yunhe looked at the comments and showed everyone the wonton noodles she had ordered, saying, "I'm having wonton bamboo-pressed noodles today."
Yunhe poured the soup in and stirred it. She scooped up a wonton and put it in her mouth. After chewing, she picked up a strand of rice noodles. "Maybe I left it for too long. The taste is just so-so."
Yunhe, adhering to the principle of not wasting food, ate while watching the live stream comments and answering everyone's questions.
"Of course, I came to Yuncheng this time to eat and drink! I'll find out some great hole-in-the-wall restaurants for you guys to try when you come to Yuncheng," Yunhe said. She'd already figured out the theme for her shoot: what she'd be eating during her seven days in Yuncheng. Seven days was enough time to eat at many big teahouses and small restaurants, so she wouldn't have to worry about finding material.
However, this was her first time in Yuncheng, and she didn't know what good teahouses, hole-in-the-wall restaurants, or snack stalls were around. So she asked everyone, "Are there any locals in Yuncheng who can recommend something?"
A few comments flooded the screen—
If you're planning to have dim sum, I recommend Yang Ji Restaurant. It's better than other dim sum restaurants, but the downside is that it's a bit pricey, haha.
Their fried rice noodles are especially delicious; I order them every time.
Yunhe kept it in mind, "Okay, I'll give it a try."
In the small restaurant, most of the customers had left, and Aunt Zheng could finally relax and eat.
She felt this was the happiest moment of her day. Aunt Zheng picked up a piece of braised duck with perilla leaves. The braised duck wasn't dry at all; it was incredibly tender. With a gentle bite, the duck meat fell perfectly off the bone, and even the bone tasted exceptionally delicious. Aunt Zheng ate with such relish that she didn't want to stop.
After a morning of work, I was tired and ate a lot. Aunt Zheng said apologetically, "I'm sorry, boss, I ate a bit too much."
Yu Miaoyin didn't think it was something she should apologize for. She was happy that someone liked her cooking. Just like seeing customers enjoying their meals at her restaurant gave her a great sense of accomplishment.
"Eat as much as you like, there's plenty here, don't be shy," Yu Miaoyin said with a smile.
"Okay, thank you, boss." Aunt Zheng added another bowl of rice.
After eating, it was time to wash the dishes. Aunt Zheng used to be a dishwasher, and she felt that working as a dishwasher at Xiaoyin's restaurant was too easy. The customers ate everything cleanly, leaving not a single grain of rice. This saved her a lot of time cleaning up, and washing the dishes was also very easy.
In the hotels she used to go to, she didn't know if the food was bad or what, but it was common to have rice in the bowls and leftovers on the plates, and the slop buckets would fill up quickly.
After washing up, Aunt Zheng helped mop the floor. Instead of going home, she chose to take a short nap at a small restaurant.
Yu Miaoyin handed her a U-shaped pillow, saying, "It'll be more comfortable to lean against like this."
Aunt Zheng was pleasantly surprised, "Thank you, boss. My daughter also told me that her neck doesn't hurt so much when she sleeps with this pillow."
"It's nothing," Yu Miaoyin said as she walked toward the kitchen.
Yu Miaoyin peeled the chestnuts He Tianyou had brought over, then added them to a food processor along with milk. She also added some of her homemade osmanthus honey; as soon as she opened the lid, the fragrance of osmanthus filled the entire small room. After blending the three ingredients until smooth, Yu Miaoyin added a small piece of butter to a pot. Once the butter melted, she poured in the blended mixture and "stirred" it until it became thick and cohesive. Then she placed it on a tray to cool.
During this time, she went home to get the molds she used to make mooncakes last time.
Grandma Chen had just finished her work and came back. When she saw Yu Miaoyin, she waved to her and said, "Here, taro."
Grandma Chen gave her a lot of taro last time, and she gave her another one this time. Grandma Chen is such a kind person.
"Thank you, Grandma." Yu Miaoyin put the taro in the house. "I made some osmanthus chestnut cake. Would you like to try some?"
Grandma Chen was very excited when she heard that there was osmanthus chestnut cake. She quickly said, "Yes, thank you, Xiaoyin. I didn't expect to get to eat and drink for free again."
The two arrived at the shop together. The chestnut paste had already cooled down. Yu Miaoyin kneaded the paste into a ball, placed it into a mold, and pressed it down. The beautiful osmanthus chestnut cake was ready. The mold she chose was flower-shaped, and the cake turned out very pretty.
"Here, Grandma, try it and see how it tastes." Yu Miaoyin handed the first one she had made to Grandma Chen.
Grandma Chen picked it up and put it in her mouth. Taking a gentle bite, the first thing she felt was the soft and glutinous texture. The chestnut paste slowly spread in her mouth, with a dense and firm texture, but it didn't feel dry at all. The rich aroma of chestnuts instantly filled her mouth, and after swallowing, a faint osmanthus flavor quietly followed. Her whole mouth was filled with the fragrance of osmanthus and chestnuts.
"Everything you make is delicious. The chestnut and sausage rice you made last time, and the osmanthus chestnut cake you made this time, are so fragrant. I even want to buy some chestnuts to take home," Grandma Chen said in a low voice.
"Grandma, take some more home to eat." Yu Miaoyin packed up a few osmanthus chestnut cakes and gave them to Grandma Chen.
Grandma Chen couldn't bring herself to refuse such a thing. She nodded, carefully took the osmanthus chestnut cake, and left, saying, "Okay, thank you, Xiaoyin."
When Aunt Zheng woke up, she gave a few to Aunt Zheng as well. Just then, Xiao Tangbao also got out of school. As usual, she rushed into the small restaurant and said in a crisp voice, "It smells so good!"
She felt like she had transformed into a little bee and flown into the small restaurant again, where the air was filled with the scent of osmanthus and chestnuts, just like the smells she had experienced in autumn.
Yu Miaoyin poked her head out from the kitchen, "My sister made some osmanthus chestnut cake, go and get some to try."
Little Tangbao smiled at her older sister, her eyes curving like the moon and revealing a row of small white teeth. "Thank you, older sister."
Aunt Zheng served the delicious osmanthus chestnut cake to Xiao Tangbao, whose eyes lit up as she said, "Thank you, Aunt Zheng."
This osmanthus chestnut cake is so delicate! It looks like a little flower, and it smells wonderful—a blend of osmanthus and chestnut aromas, with even a hint of milk. Thinking of her good friend, Xiao Tangbao took an extra one for Xiao Ran.
Just then, Xiao Ran came to find Xiao Tang Bao to read a storybook together, and the two of them stood at the door and started eating osmanthus chestnut cake.
The osmanthus chestnut cake is soft and fluffy, with a sweet osmanthus flavor. The chestnut puree, after being mashed, is very smooth and has no grainy texture. Adding milk not only enhances the milky aroma but also makes the chestnut cake smooth and delicate.
"It's so delicious, thank you, Xiao Tang Bao." After finishing her meal, Xiao Ran felt like she had turned into a little bee, just like a little bee sucking osmanthus honey.
"It seems that my sister used the chestnuts that Brother He Tianyou gave her to make it," Xiao Tangbao explained.
"Wow!" Xiao Ran exclaimed in surprise.
Now, Xiao Ran truly believes that Sister A Yin has magic powers; she can turn delicious chestnuts into even more delicious chestnut and sausage rice, and even chestnut cake.
Xiao Ran also wishes she had such magic.
"Little friends, what are you eating?" A girl passing by couldn't resist asking, seeing how delicious the pastries the two children were enjoying.
"Osmanthus chestnut cake," Xiao Ran said.
"Did you buy it from this shop?" The girl knew the osmanthus chestnut cake must be delicious just from the name, and she was craving it now.
Xiao Tangbao shook her head, "No, this was made by my older sister. There are only a few, but she made a lot of other delicious things. You can try them."
"Okay, thank you, you two lovely children." The little girl smiled. She had actually already decided to have hot pot today, but since there was no osmanthus chestnut cake, she decided to skip it.
The girl took a step, then turned back. The owner was cooking, and the aroma wafting from the kitchen was so strong that it beckoned her to come back.
Aunt Zheng went up to greet the guests, "Welcome! What would you like to eat?"
She smelled the aroma of tofu and meat, and after looking at the items on the menu, she hesitated for a moment before saying, "I'll have one of braised duck with perilla leaves and one of stuffed tofu."
"Okay." Aunt Zheng kept it in mind.
The two children went back into the store to look at storybooks. What adorable kids! The little girl thought to herself, "These are the kids I should be posting online asking if my child can be a child model!"
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