Journey to the West: Starting by taking Sun Wukong as my disciple!-Chapter 656 - 655: Tasting the Cake

Seeing such great equipment, Chen Nuo felt an urge stirring within him to make desserts. He had never encountered either the equipment or the desserts, but now he was teeming with theoretical knowledge—he was definitely eager to show off his skills.

For beginners, Chiffon Cake is the entry-level dessert, and there are many types of desserts based on the Chiffon Cake. However, the main dessert Chen Nuo wanted to make now was the Chiffon Cake.

Following the ratios and quantities in his mind, he prepared everything needed for the Chiffon Cake. After mixing all the ingredients into a batter and pouring it into the container, he opened the oven door and slid it in.

After pressing the button, all that was left to do was wait for that anticipated moment when the cake would be done.

With a ’ding’ from the oven, Chen Nuo opened the door,

and used oven mitts to take the Chiffon Cake out of the mold onto the work surface.

The Chiffon Cake was a perfect dark yellow color throughout, fitting the mold’s shape exactly, and smelled deliciously of cake. Chen Nuo pressed down on the cake with his hand—it was almost perfectly soft. It seemed that his first attempt at baking a cake was quite successful.

Although it was a dessert, the Chiffon Cake didn’t need to be overly sweet. Chen Nuo had used much less sugar, so it wouldn’t taste sickeningly sweet.

Just the Chiffon Cake alone wasn’t enough, so Chen Nuo turned his attention to the cream.

He whipped the light cream and sugar in the mixer, and while waiting for it to be ready, he cut up several types of fruit and sliced the cake horizontally. Just as he finished cutting, the cream was also whipped.

He transferred the whipped cream to a piping bag, and layered cake, cream, and fruit. After finishing with a final layer of cream smoothed over the top with a spatula, it was all set.

Chen Nuo cut the cake, placed it on a plate, and carried it to the adjacent kitchen.

Sun Wukong and Sha Wujing were still busily at work, so engrossed that they didn’t even notice Chen Nuo’s arrival from behind until he knocked on the door. Only then did the two of them realize he had come over.

"Master, why have you come?" Sun Wukong quickly asked.

Having not visited the kitchen for the past couple of days, Chen Nuo must have been busy with other matters. Now that he had suddenly come by, could it mean that there was something they needed to do?

Sha Wujing, though also pleased to see Chen Nuo, didn’t show it as openly as Sun Wukong.

He set down his work, called out "Shopkeeper Chen" and then waited for Chen Nuo to speak.

Chen Nuo placed the cake he had already cut in front of them, "I’ve just been experimenting with desserts. Give it a try."

Sun Wukong’s eyes lit up when he saw the exquisite cake on the plate.

But he didn’t understand what Chen Nuo meant by ’dessert’. As he walked over, he asked, "Master, is a dessert a new dish? This looks quite appealing. Is it sweet?"

"It’s not a new dish," Chen Nuo explained. "Dessert is a category of food independent from main courses, similar to pastries."

Sun Wukong didn’t quite grasp it at first, but after Chen Nuo mentioned pastries, he fully understood.

He had encountered pastries in the past,

which were to be enjoyed with tea, often uncomfortably stuffing. One bite of pastry required two sips of tea.

Being rather impatient, he really couldn’t enjoy those pastries. However, the one Chen Nuo had made did look rather tempting, pure white and neatly cut into triangles—seemingly delicious at first glance.

Sha Wujing looked at the dessert, and although he didn’t know what it was, as Sun Wukong said, it looked very appealing. Moreover, since it was made by Chen Nuo, it was bound to be especially delicious.

The two walked to the table, where two slices of cake had already been served. Next to the cakes were iron spoons, meant for eating the cake.

"Master, as men, why did you pair us with spoons, eh? Even if we didn’t have chopsticks, it would be fine to use our hands. Giving us spoons just seems too effeminate."

Sun Wukong looked at the spoon and felt some distaste. In his mind, apart from drinking soup or porridge, spoons were for women and children.

"What, you really want to use your hands?" Chen Nuo asked.

Sha Wujing didn’t echo Sun Wukong’s sentiment. Whatever Shopkeeper Chen gave him, he would eat, and whatever utensil Shopkeeper Chen provided, he would use; he wasn’t picky.

Seeing Sha Wujing reaching for the spoon, Sun Wukong became even more disdainful, "What, using a spoon to catch Master’s attention?"

Sha Wujing, about to eat with the spoon, hadn’t expected Sun Wukong to say such a thing to him.

He paused, then said, "It’s not that I want to attract Shopkeeper Chen’s attention, but I believe there’s a reason Shopkeeper Chen gave us spoons."

"Sha Wujing thinks more thoroughly. I originally wanted to give you forks, but couldn’t find any. This iron flat spoon will do just fine."

Following Sha Wujing’s remark, Chen Nuo continued, glancing at Sun Wukong, "However, some prefer to use their hands, so let him eat with his hands."

Sun Wukong stiffened. He was already planning to use the spoon when Chen Nuo made that comment about him.

Sha Wujing, oblivious to this little episode, had already taken a spoonful of cake and put it in his mouth.

The cream, pure dairy cream, melted instantly upon entering his mouth, filling him with its milky fragrance. Sha Wujing’s eyes lit up completely.

Shopkeeper Chen had told him earlier that this was a pastry, and he instinctively thought of the dry and choking texture of pastries.

But he hadn’t expected the cake to be so soft, fluffy, and sweetly fragrant, not at all choking, and after one bite, he immediately wanted a second.

While Sun Wukong was still debating between using a spoon or his hands, Sha Wujing had already polished off the cake in a few bites. Now Sun Wukong didn’t have the luxury to think about forks or spoons anymore. He grabbed the cake and brought it to his mouth.

As soon as he picked up the cake with his hands, they became covered in cream. Sun Wukong started, looked at the cream on his hands and said to Chen Nuo, "Master, what kind of thing is this cake? How does it melt? Look at my hand, it’s a mess."

"That’s why I prepared the spoon," Chen Nuo said languidly. "I’ve prepared everything for you, and if you don’t use it and get your hand all messy, you can’t blame me."

Indeed, he couldn’t blame him. Sun Wukong hadn’t anticipated that the white layer on top of the cake could stick to his hands. But now that he had started, there was no need to switch to a spoon.

He popped a big piece of the cake into his mouth and his face showed the same expression as Sha Wujing’s.

"This cake is too delicious. I’ve never had such a tasty pastry before. It’s sweet but not at all cloying. The stuff on top turns into milk in your mouth, so milky and fragrant," he said.

Not only was the cream delicious—the cake base was very soft too, but without being mushy, and the moist cake, along with the cream, complemented each other perfectly, highlighting the deliciousness of the cream.

Sun Wukong gobbled up the entire cake in three or four bites, then started licking his fingers.

"Shopkeeper Chen, this cake is too good. It’s even better than all the pastries I’ve eaten combined," Sha Wujing said. "I want to learn how to make this."