I'm the Culinary God-Chapter 604 - 286: To satisfy a craving, you need custard lava filling! The most satisfying way to eat Xuanwei Ham! [Subscribe please]_2

Chapter 604: Chapter 286: To satisfy a craving, you need custard lava filling! The most satisfying way to eat Xuanwei Ham! [Subscribe please]_2

With a gentle press, the mooncake’s shape emerged.

The top of the cake was stamped with the four characters "Lin Ji’s Food" in a seal-like font. This mold was designed with Lele’s help and belonged to the same series as her carved seals.

This helped establish a unified brand identity.

Once shaped, the mooncakes couldn’t be baked immediately. They had to be placed in the freezer for about three hours. This effectively prevents the filling from bursting or the crust from breaking during baking.

Making these mooncakes required patience; only by taking one’s time could the perfect effect be achieved.

At one o’clock in the afternoon, while everyone else was busy cooking and attending to guests, Lin Xu took the frozen mooncakes out. He arranged them one by one on a baking tray lined with baking paper, sprayed a layer of water on their surfaces, and placed them into the preheated oven to begin baking.

In front of the oven were two bowls containing liquids to brush on the mooncakes: one with egg yolk liquid and the other with honey water.

Many baked snacks require a brush of egg yolk liquid to give the surface a golden hue, making them more visually appealing.

However, there was a knack to making the egg yolk liquid. For instance, the yolk should be mixed with an equal amount of water. Too much water would lighten the color of the egg yolk liquid, while too little would make it too viscous and difficult to spread.

Free-range chicken eggs should be used, as their yolks are a brighter yellow. Ordinary eggs from poultry farms have paler yolks, which wouldn’t create the perfect effect when brushed onto the food’s surface.

Moreover, after the egg liquid and water were thoroughly mixed, the mixture had to be strained through a fine sieve. This filtered out the chalazae in the egg yolk, preventing it from marring the food’s appearance.

As for the honey water, it was relatively simple. Stirring a small amount of honey evenly with water was sufficient. Brushing with honey water helped to moisturize the crust and prevent it from drying out and cracking in the oven.

After baking for five minutes, Lin Xu took the mooncakes out and slowly brushed their surfaces with the egg yolk liquid using a fine brush.

Once brushed with the egg liquid, the "Lin Ji’s Food" lettering on the top became even clearer and more distinct.

Then, he returned them to the oven to continue baking.

After another six minutes, he opened the oven again. He took the mooncakes out and began to brush them with honey water.

After a few more minutes of baking, once the surface of the mooncakes turned golden, it signified they were ready.

He took them out and placed them on a tray lined with oil-absorbing paper to cool.

The crust of a freshly baked mooncake is dry and crisp, making the texture slightly less than perfect. It’s best to let it rest for a day until the crust softens as it reabsorbs oil. That’s when the mooncake is soft and at its most delicious.

But who would be willing to wait a day at this point? No one wanted to wait even an extra minute.

The mooncakes were still hot to the touch when several people had already gathered at the kitchen door, waiting to be fed.

As Lin Xu came out with the mooncakes, Shen Baobao and Chen Yan also returned from the villa, each carrying a food container, which surprised Lin Xu.

Are the Milk Yellow Mooncakes ready so soon?

"Xu Bao, come try the Milk Yellow Sticky Rice Cakes Yan Bao and I made." 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Sticky Rice Cakes?

Lin Xu asked curiously, "Weren’t you two going to make mooncakes? How did it turn into Sticky Rice Cakes?"

Shen Baobao pouted. "We had already made the filling. However, Aunt Liu said making mooncakes was too troublesome. It required mixing dough, molding, baking, brushing with water, and waiting for the oil return before they could be eaten. So, we switched to Sticky Rice Cakes."

"Are Sticky Rice Cakes less troublesome?"

Chen Yan opened her food container, smiling, and said, "Not troublesome at all! Just mix the glutinous rice flour to make dough, wrap the filling inside, and pan-fry both sides in a flat-bottomed pan until golden. It’s super simple! Come on, everyone, try it! Milk Yellow Sticky Rice Cakes, the fighter jet among Sticky Rice Cakes, passionately presented by Galaxy’s chief baker, the beautiful Chen Yan, and her assistant, Shen Hanhan!"

Shu Yun, who was waiting for mooncakes, couldn’t help but laugh. "Even so... aren’t those pan-fried? There was no baking involved!"

Chen Yan’s face turned bright red with embarrassment, and then she retorted indignantly, "Are you going to eat them or not? Whoever doesn’t eat will go down a cup size!"

Hardly had she spoken when several hands reached into the food container to grab Sticky Rice Cakes. Zeng Xiaoqi, who had specifically taken a taxi to eat mooncakes, even grabbed two, afraid that Chen Yan’s ethereal curse might actually come true.

Lin Xu also took one to try. He wasn’t worried about his chest shrinking; he was more curious about the taste. If this was good, he’d try making some Sticky Rice Cakes himself later—for example, Date Sticky Rice Cakes, Bean Paste Sticky Rice Cakes, Black Sesame Sticky Rice Cakes, and so on.

The outer crust of the Sticky Rice Cake was pan-fried to a crisp. A bite revealed a soft and slightly sticky interior, carrying the unique fragrance of glutinous rice.

Once bitten open, the custard filling inside exuded a rich milky aroma, while the taste offered the sandy texture and faint saltiness of salted egg yolk.

Mm, not bad, the flavor is great.

You had to admit Aunt Liu was good at making suggestions. She knew these two weren’t strong on the basics. Making mooncakes would have kept them busy for ages just portioning the dough. With Sticky Rice Cakes, however, precision wasn’t as necessary as long as the filling was wrapped, regardless of size. There was no concern for appearance either, as the method was simple yet delicious.

After finishing the Sticky Rice Cakes, everyone started eating the Milk Yellow Mooncakes. Lin Xu said to Dou Wenjing, "Post a notice online. Starting now, the shop will add sixty boxes of Milk Yellow Mooncakes and one hundred boxes of Flower Ham Mooncakes each day. Customers can preorder them at the front desk."

Dou Wenjing nodded. "I’ll have the operations team post it right away."

Lin Xu took a mooncake and broke it open. The golden, molten center had already melted and was now slowly oozing from the break. However, due to its viscosity, it flowed very slowly, so there was no worry of it dripping onto oneself.

"Oh, and remind people in the promotional material that our shop’s mooncakes contain no additives. Therefore, after purchase, they are best consumed within three days. They can be stored in the refrigerator for up to five days."