//------------------------------// // Chapter 72- Rising Baker // Story: Reformed Unicorn Group Podcast // by Quoterific //------------------------------// “Welcome back every creature to the Reformed Unicorn Group Podcasts, or R.U.G. for short,” Starlight introduced every creature to today’s show, “We are back live in the studio kitchen for a special cooking demonstration, this time courtesy of Sunset Shimmer.” “So tell us, Sunset,” Tempest asked with curiosity, “Since I never took you for a baker, what are we baking today?” “Today is a special recipe from Pinkie Pie at CHS. Every year, she makes a special souffle for Rarity during the Winter Holidays. However, every year she misses it,” Sunset explained with a hint of sadness at the end. The others looked at her in confusion. “Why is it a disappointment every year?” Trixie asked. “According to her, souffles are only good at a certain time, otherwise they deflate and becomes unpleasant. It took seven minutes to reach Rarity, but we had to survive this big snowball fight outside Pinkie’s house. I never seen a snowball fight taken this seriously,” Sunset shook her head and chuckled at the memory. “Well, that’s a story for another time,” Starlight chuckled as well, “Right now, we have some baking to do. What do we need for the best chocolate souffle, Sunset?” “We need a little butter for greasing, one-hundred and eighty grams of plain chocolate, three-hundred millilitres of milk, twenty-five grams of coco powder, four egg yolks, sixty grams of caster sugar and forty grams of plain flour. We also need a meringue, so that’s six eggs for the whites and another forty grams of caster sugar,” Sunset read from her list, made by Pinkie Pie. “That’s a lot of ingredients for a souffle,” Trixie added. “As Pinkie said, baking is more a fine art,” Sunset laughed, “We are so happy when I told her I would like to bake something for the R.U.G., so she insisted on her chocolate souffle recipe.” “So we’ve got everything that we need,” Starlight doubled checked again, “What’s up first, Sunset?” “Best to preheat the oven first,” Sunset suggest, “Tempest, could you do one-hundred and seventy Celestius since it’s a fanned one, gas mark five. If you don’t have a fanned over, listeners, do it to one-hundred and ninety.” Tempest got to it. “For the greasing, grease a fourteen by eight centimetre souffle dish with butter and dust with caster sugar. Make a collar for the souffle dish by folding a fifty by thirty centimetre piece of baking parchment 4 times lengthways to make a seven and a half centimetre deep collar. Wrap it around the top of the dish and secure with string,” Sunset gave a lengthy instruction, which Starlight used her magic to measure the precise amount of baking paper. “Then we get onto the crème pâtissier chocolate. Melt the chocolate in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Remove from the heat and leave to cool slightly,” Sunset gave the next step, which Trixie was on, stirring and mixing the chocolate until it was smooth and well-melted. “Pour the milk and cocoa powder into a heavy-based pan and bring gradually to the boil. Remove from the heat and leave to cool for thirty seconds. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and caster sugar until pale, then whisk in the plain flour. Pour the chocolate milk onto the eggs, whisking continuously, then pour back into the pan,” Sunset gave another lengthy instruction, which Tempest managed to do with ease. She separated the yolk from the whites. “I have no idea how Pinkie can do these steps without a mistake,” Tempest wiped her forehead after some hard mixing. “Even under a spell, she is one lean-mean-baking-machine,” Starlight chuckled wryly. “Then you bring back to the boil, whisking continuously over a medium heat and cook for one minute until thickened. Remove from the heat and whisk in the melted chocolate. Spoon the crème pâtissier chocolate into a bowl, cover the surface with cling film to prevent a skin forming and leave to cool to room temperature,” Sunset ordered Tempest, who followed her to the word. “In a clean bowl whisk the egg whites to soft peaks. Add the sugar and continue whisking to a stiff and glossy meringue,” Sunset told Starlight, who made the meringue with ease wither her magic. Sunset then turned to Starlight again, “Whisk one third of the meringue mixture into the crème pâtissier chocolate, then fold in the remaining two-thirds using a large metal spoon. The mixture should be fairly loose.” Starlight just nodded, concentrating on her work. Trixie moved the chocolate and they all took it in turns to mix. “Pour the mixture into the souffle dish. Run your thumb around the interior rim of the dish to ensure a good rise. Bake on the preheated baking tray for forty to fifty minutes, or until well risen and springy to touch,” Sunset gave the last step, which Trixie separated the mixture out and placed them into the oven. Trixie then turned to Starlight. “Now about that snowball fight,” Trixie asked. “The most dramatic snowball fight of my life,” Sunset chuckled, “Me and Pinkie were caught in the middle of it, whilst all the others were on different teams. The Apple Family even built a wall of snow. I wasn’t so lucky and landed on my keys from one good shot.” “Ouch,” Starlight winced. “Rainbow Dash even went as far as disguising herself as a snowman for two days, according to Pinkie,” Sunset chuckled. “Now that’s commitment,” Tempest noted. It was at that moment the oven made a sound, telling them that their bakes were ready. Trixie was quick to take them out, as they were best eaten hot and well risen. The group quickly tucked in, moaning at the pleasure of sticky chocolate. “Now that’s good food for a cold winter’s day,” Starlight complimented in a state of bliss. “Well, that’s all from the R.U.G. Now if you can excuse us, we have some souffles to enjoy!” Tempest finished off.