「Itsuki and!」
「……? Ha! Chris and!」
「Eh? Eh? Um…… Mi-Mizera’s?」
「Snack cooking!」「……Cooking!」「…………Eh?」
Yes. Even though it is a little early, this is the afternoon sweets-making session I promised with Chris.
「……What was that just now?」
A perfectly natural question.
But there was still a slightly emotional atmosphere lingering, so I decided to change the mood!
If we stayed like that, I would have wanted to excuse myself!
I wanted to leave the two of them alone so they could grow closer!
But we had a promise, so it could not be helped!
「Also, how did Chris manage to play along so smoothly……」
「I-I just kind of felt like it? I’ve always thought that onii-san would do something like this……」
Just what kind of things has Chris been imagining about me?
It is a bit embarrassing to say myself, but if she thinks I normally act this silly, that is honestly a little hurtful!
I am the oldest one here!
「All right. Well, let us set that aside and get started right away.」
「Ah, yes!」
「We are setting it aside? We can just set it aside? ……Haa. Understood.」
And so, the day before yesterday when we were about to leave, Chris had begged me with
『Please teach me how to make Amatsukuni sweets!』
which is why we ended up making them together!
「Yes. Today we will be making dango. I have prepared the highest-grade dango flour. Simply follow the measurements, mix it with water or hot water and sugar, shape them into nice round balls, boil them, then cool them in cold water. That is all.」
「Ooh, it sounds easy! Is dango flour made from rice?」
「Yes, that is correct. And it really is simple. If you want to master it, it is not so simple, but the basics are easy.」
If one wants to improve the texture or mouthfeel, there are many things to experiment with, such as changing the ingredients, the kneading method, or the temperature of the water.
But I am sure Chris will do all that later on her own, so for today we will keep it simple!
The three of us then began kneading the dango dough.
Since all three of us, including me, have plenty of cooking experience, we finished in no time.
Then came the tasting.
「Mmm…… It is faintly sweet and wonderfully chewy……」
「The ones Chris made have a very nice texture. They are delicious.」
「Ehehe. Thank you. Mizera-san’s have great springiness.」
「Mine turned out a little misshapen…… And milord’s…… are especially soft.」
「I have a particular fondness for softness.」
「……Is that supposed to have a dirty meaning?」
No, it is not like that? I just wanted to focus on a soft texture, that is all. Really.
「Hmm…… It really was simple, but the result changes quite a lot depending on how you make it…… This is the kind of sweet that makes you want to try many different things.」
「Indeed. You can mix in all sorts of ingredients, and if you make the dough even softer and more stretchy, not only can you wrap red bean paste inside, but you can also put fruits like strong berries in it. That is delicious too～」
Ah, the enchanting ichigo daifuku……
Among the many unacceptable heresies, this is one of the few that has been accepted as a legitimate classic through sheer power. A captivating Japanese sweet.
Next time I will have to passionately explain the charm of strong berries until she is convinced!
「You mix fruit with the red bean paste? ……I see. So it is a double harmony of the juicy freshness of the fruit and the rich sweetness of the paste!」
「Exactly!」
Chris has never eaten strawberry daifuku before, yet her insight is impressive……
As expected of Chris. Being the hero’s personal cook is no empty title.
「If we are going to wrap fruit inside…… then a soft texture like the one onii-san made would indeed be best. But if possible, I would like it even softer…… In that case, we would need to change the base ingredients of the dango……. Fufu. This is getting motivating!」
「Ooh. By the way, what you are probably thinking of making is a sweet called daifuku. I think…… you use flour made from glutinous rice……? It should be sold in Einzheil too.」
「I see…… It might be better to try the finished product once. I will buy some on the way back! Thank you very much. This is getting exciting!」
It seems Chris’s soul as a cook has been ignited.
This…… means I should look forward to receiving some samples later.
「Now then…… Shall we move on to the main event?」
「The main event……?」
「Yeah. Just teaching dango is not really enough to call it a proper lesson, right? From here on, we will make sweets from the drifter’s world.」
「Sweets from the drifter’s world…… In other words, sweets from Hayato-sama’s original world!」
「Correct! When you think of dango, this is the one. But it is something that absolutely cannot be made in this world. Which means the key ingredient we will use is…… soy sauce.」
「S-Soy sauce……? That is the seasoning from Hayato-sama’s world that was used in the grilled rice balls we received before, right? But that tasted salty……」
「Fufufu…… Chris. You should abandon your fixed ideas.」
Soy sauce can also be used in sweets.
I will teach her about shio daifuku later as well.
「All right…… Let us make mitarashi dango!」
The ingredients are sugar or brown sugar, water, soy sauce, and kudzu starch or potato starch.
This time, to keep it simple and easy, we used sugar and potato starch.
「The steps are simple. Put the ingredients in a pot, heat them, and once it thickens, turn off the heat and it is done.」
「Ooh…… This is simple too. The right amount…… so that is where personal preference comes in.」
「Exactly. Well, you can just ask Hayato for his preference and adjust accordingly. Then, skewer the dango, lightly grill them, and pour plenty of mitarashi sauce on top…… and mitarashi dango is complete!」
Mmm! The heated aroma of sweet soy sauce is wonderful……
For the dango, I used a mix with a little glutinous rice flour added to make them more stretchy.
Regular dango would be too firm and lack enough chew.
Of course, I did not forget to add grill marks to the dango either.
「Mmm…… What a nice aroma. Nn! Nfu…… They are especially soft and have a slight stretch to them. The texture is interesting and delicious!」
「Ooh…… The thick sweet-and-salty sauce coats them perfectly…… and it goes so well with the fragrant, chewy dango……」
「Both of you are eating so happily. Here, have some of these too.」
I also want to eat right away, but first I need to prepare some tea.
I made it a little strong, but since there are plenty of mitarashi dango, it should be fine.
「Hmm. Thank you. Haa…… It goes perfectly with green tea……」
「Yeah…… The bitterness of the tea and the sweetness of the dango…… This is dangerous. I cannot stop eating.」
Yes, yes.
There are also an-dango with red bean paste on top of grass mochi, you know.
Those go well with green tea too.
「And then…… here.」
「Vegetable pickles……? Why now…… Ha! No, you cannot do that. Bringing something so salty here……!」
「Ah…… It is already too late. We have fallen into this three-part loop and cannot escape anymore……」
Fufufu…… You have fallen.
Then I shall fall as well!
Of course, I start with the mitarashi dango!
Ah…… that aroma.
There are probably very few drifters who can resist this.
When I was a child I preferred Western sweets over Japanese ones, but once you become an adult, there are times when you suddenly crave Japanese sweets so badly.
The dango gained a nice toasted fragrance from being grilled, and the generous amount of sweet-and-salty mitarashi sauce coats the soft, chewy dango, making my mouth incredibly happy……
Thanks to making them a little sweeter, the strong green tea pairs perfectly.
And then, the pickles……
The lightly salted flavor that complements rice, paired with the crisp, crunchy texture of vegetables like komatsuna, creates a nice contrast with the soft, sweet dango and makes me want even more.
Dango, tea, pickles, dango, tea…… This is never going to stop……
「Rice…… is quite fattening, right? Chew chew.」
「Is it? It is a grain, after all. Chew chew.」
「Yeah. Rice has a high sugar content, so it is easy to gain weight. Chew chew.」
「That is troubling…… Zuzu……」
「It really is troubling…… Zuuu……」
「Well, it tastes this good. It cannot be helped. Zuzu……」
Ah, it will not stop. I cannot stop.
This will not end until the dango are all gone……
I was thinking of giving some as souvenirs, but it looks like we are going to eat everything……
Still, who could possibly stop us right now——.
「I have returned, Master— aaah!」
「Hmm? Ah…. that is unfair」
When I turned around, Wendy and Shiro had come back carrying their arms full of ingredients.
……Come to think of it, Wendy was also supposed to join us for the sweets making!
「That is so mean, Master…… It is true that we took too long looking at many things, but are we being left out? I wanted to make sweets together with everyone too……」
「Hmm. It is unfair that the three of you ate so many delicious-looking things.」
How did she know we ate so many…… Ah, the number of empty skewers makes it obvious……
「W-We are still going to make more! We will make a lot! Right, Chris, Mizera?」
「Y-Yes, that is right. We need some for souvenirs as well, and I want to experiment more…… Please join us, Wendy-san!」
「Yes. I also want to review how to make dango, so let us make them together, Wendy-sama!」
「Uuu…… Understood. I will forgive you. But…… Shiro and I can eat the ones that are left, right?」
「Yes…… Yes. Please go ahead……」
The three of us gave up our seats and let Wendy and Shiro have them.
If we start making more during this time…… Wendy will feel sad.
In that case…… Chris can make more tea, and Mizera can prepare additional pickles.
I will…… get the flour and other ingredients ready!
……Fufu. I thought no one could stop me, but as expected, the only ones who can stop me are my lovers. Hm? What is it, Shiro? Eh? There is more? Ah, the breakfast Chris made? There is still some left…… Would you like to eat that too? Yes. Then I will warm it up! Wendy too? Shiro wants extra meat as well?
Yes! Understood!
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