Ever since I was a little girl, promises have dictated my life. Promises with my parents, cousins, friends. It facilitated friendships, challenged me and encouraged self-love and growth. Aside from the common day agreements that I would make with pe...
Chirping sounds filled the air as Amai was walking up the hill. She stopped to look up and to find that she had arrived at her destination. There were two large gates protecting the inside dormitory that happen to look abandoned from the outside. Unable to push the door open like a normal person, Amai proceeded to kick the gates open. She continued walking forward until she entered the dorm. Loud noises were heard left and right, it was dark and you couldn't see anything. Fortunately, Megumi happened to walk down the stairs the moment Amai entered. The blue haired female couldn't help but stare at the Nakiri.
"Sorry to disturb you, but could you show me where Fumio-san is?" Amai asked kindly. Megumi was a little shocked but nodded her head furiously. Quietly, Megumi lead Amai to the kitchen where Fumio-san happen to be cleaning.
"Fumio-san! Nakiri-san would like to see you." Megumi stuttered, gesturing to Amai.
"Thank you, Tadokoro-san." Amai thanked, nodding her head to show thanks. The flustered female hurriedly left the kitchen, leaving Fumio-san and Amai.
"Nakiri Amai, I hope you've brought all the ingredients you require for the entry attempt." Fumio-san acknowledges as the blonde female enters the kitchen. With a smile on her face, Amai nods confidently before taking out her ingredients for preparation.
She was going to prepare perhaps the most simple and well-known dessert, strawberry shortcake. Strawberry shortcake typically consists of three different components: the cake, the strawberries and the cream.
The longest step was the strawberries because macerating them took time. Macerate meaning to soften the fruit by soaking it in a liquid. Amai hulled and cut up the strawberries before slicing open a vanilla pod and tossing them into a bowl with some sugar to macerate.
Making the cake was the most important part as the foundation in which the dessert is built. The texture of a shortcake can make or break the entire experience. Amai believed that the perfect shortcake was fluffy, airy and moist. Any cake essentially calls for flour and eggs. Separating the cake process into two sections, Amai first worked on the dry ingredients.
She made sure to measure her powders with a scale to ensure the utmost accuracy because with desserts, proportions have a significant impact on the final product. Next, she sifted the dry components (flour and baking powder) into the bowl to add air into the cake. After the dry ingredients, Amai proceeded to prepare the wet.
The eggs were cracked and yolks were separated from the whites. It was time to build the meringue by beating the eggs whites with some cream of tartar. Chefs usually use an electric mixture for the step but Amai preferred to use a hand whisk because it allowed her to control the consistency of the meringue. As she beat the white, the slowly mixed in the sugar bit by bit. The beating of the eggs like the sifting of the flours was necessary to aerate the cake. Once the meringue was at a stiff peak, Amai combined the wet and dry ingredients before baking the cake off the in oven.
Ding! The cake was done.
Taking it out, Amai left it to cool while she prepared the cream. It was nothing difficult. Just some cream, sugar and vanilla. When the cake had dropped in temperature, Amai assembled all the pieces together.
This was the finished product.
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