Crème Fraiche carefully layered the right cheeses as Peter instructed her. The soup was already piping hot and just needed to be served into cups. With the Swiss and white cheddar nicely layered atop the bread, all that was left was the Havarti, which Crème did with the delicacy of a pointillism artist.
“Wow,” Peter complained, “are you almost done there?”
“One of the first things to know about cooking,” taught Crème, deep in concentration, “is that cooking requires patience. Anyone can slap together cheese on bread, but it takes a true chef to make something truly outstanding with them.”
Peter nodded, merely as a sign of acknowledging that she spoke to him. He could have cared less about what she actually said; he just wanted his sandwich. With the last of the two sandwiches constructed, Crème lifted them both up and lathered both sides with butter before putting them both in a large skillet.
“I must say,” Crème said, “your father has excellent tastes. Does he make this for you often?”
“Eh,” Peter tried to recall, “he would always make it on days when I was down in the dumps.”
“Oh, and I know how much you miss him, so this can be such an occasion!”
“Yes, please don’t remind me.”
“My apologies, Peter, but I shall see to it that your time here be fun, fresh, and…”
She took a break to flip the sandwiches over, revealing a perfectly golden-brown surface with a loud sizzle as the other side went on.
“…delicious.”
“Wow,” Peter sighed. “That does look really good.”
“I know. This is what years of training and determination have brought me. If you truly wish to cook as well as I or even your father, you should really pay attention to my words instead of dozing off.”
“Dozing off? When have I–”
“I saw the way you nodded when I talked about patience. Now, I realize you’re a child, Peter, but in order to fully grasp the art of cooking, you must listen to me like an adult, both ears and mind.”
“That’s not burning yet, is it?”
“No, not yet…”
Peter looked back at her and back at the sandwich. She seemed to know what she was doing. With a few seconds past, Crème took the sandwiches off with a spatula and put them on the counter. While the finished grilled cheeses sat there, Crème ladled some ruby-red tomato soup into two soup-cups, and put them both on the center of a plate.
Crème then cut the sandwiches down the diagonal center with a chef’s knife and put two halves on each plate next to the cup. Lastly, Crème reached inside the oven with her magic and pulled out about a dozen or more salad-sized croutons, toasted to absolute perfection.
Peter couldn’t be sure what he was watching, but he had never seen someone be this perfect with food, even for his dad. Crème finished the plating with a gentle garnishing of about six of the croutons in each bowl.
“Alright,” Crème accounted, “let us go find Twilight.”
Crème picked up both saucers with the grilled cheeses and cups of soup on them. Peter followed her out, taking occasional glances at the steam that rolled off of his and Twilight’s plates. Perhaps Peter would benefit from learning a thing or two from this mare.
========================================
Peter began to slice shallots as the butter in his pan was beginning to heat up. Once he was finished, he picked up the pot, brought it to the counter and flicked the shallots into it, the shallots sizzling instantly. Peter then went to check on his roux in the pot beside him, and saw that it was beginning to turn a golden brown, allowing him to take the cup of milk from the counter behind him and add it in a little bit at a time until the butter-and-flour mixture was fully incorporated.
Peter stirred the shallots a touch, getting to see the slight, golden color that he wanted. He then took the pan over to the counter at a small pile of diced potatoes and threw them in as well, allowing them to soften. Peter let those sit for a spell while he went to the counter to a head of romaine lettuce, cutting the stem off and halving it down the center. He quickly cut up cherry tomatoes that he left so he could stir his potatoes. While the potatoes coloring didn’t seem to have a noticeable change, the shallots were beginning to really have a nice color to them.
Peter figured he could allow them a minute or so to sit while he would get prepared for the appetizer. Peter ran back to the pantry and grabbed a large mound of hay. While nearly every one of his dishes were inspired from human cuisine (even if they were vegan/vegetarian), he knew that in order to know what he was cooking for, he’d have to make a classic Equestrian treat.
With the hay gathered, Peter loaded the golden shallots and potatoes into the pot, stirring it in to incorporate everything and too keep the milk from scorching, seasoning it slightly with some salt and pepper. The soup would need some time to simmer, so Peter went to the hay to begin his work.
____________________________________________________________
Twilight, Spike, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, Crème Fraiche, and Patrick on Peter’s laptop were all sitting and waiting for Peter to come out.
“Surely he doesn’t think that he’s going to be able to give you all eight dishes at once,” Patrick said. “You’d have to be an octopus to manage all those dishes.”
“Indeed,” Celestia agreed, “but I know Peter will do whatever he knows is right for him to pass this test.”
“I assume we shall see the salad and soup first,” Crème predicted. “A classic combination. Then he shall do both the sandwich and appetizer next, so that way, he could give us all three entrees at once, and then cap off with the dessert.”
“If he does each of these in thirty minute intervals,” reasoned Luna, “he might have a shot here.”
Twilight was much more nervous about the well-being for Peter’s passing.
“Oh,” groaned Twilight. “Come on, Peter, you have to do this.”
“Come on, Twilight,” eased Spike, patting his companion on the side of her belly, “Peter will do just fine. If his cooking is anything like yesterday’s, then he’ll ace this thing. Just you see!”
“Yeah,” Twilight reluctantly agreed, “I guess you’re right.”
It still didn’t keep the beads of sweat from trickling down her brow.
____________________________________________________________
Peter had tied off and cut the frayed ends of about a dozen very small bundles of hay with other strands of hay. The bundles had the approximate thickness of steak fries.
“I’m sure this will be plenty for a mere taste test,” he said.
Peter went back to stir his soup. The potatoes had to be done by now. Peter took a spoon and dipped it into the pot, pulling up a potato on its way out. Peter put the potato in his mouth and bit down. The potatoes had a touch of unfavorable firmness, but in a few minutes time, they would be done.
Without further to do, Peter went to the blender set up behind him. In it, he mixed in anchovy paste, a clove of garlic, mayonnaise, crème fraiche, as well as chopped parsley, tarragon, chives, and a touch of oregano. Peter topped it off with a couple tablespoons of lemon juice and a handful of gorgonzola. Peter turned the blender on, allowing him to whip and chop up the ingredients together.
As they continued to meld, Peter took his halved head of romaine with a pair of tongs and took it to the grill next to the stove. The embers inside of it were burning nicely, but he only needed it for a second. Peter laid the flat end of the head on the grill for one second literally. Lifting it back, he saw that the inside had a slight blackened char to it.
Peter placed the romaine on a long, rectangular plate flat-side up and turned off the blender. Lastly, he took the white bulbs of the green onion that he saved from his chives from the dressing and sliced them thin. Peter took the green goddess dressing and poured it into a plastic bottle, screwing on the nozzle top afterwards. Peter, in a zigzag pattern, applied a decent amount dressing to the lettuce. Peter topped the lettuce with the onion and tomato.
Peter took out a grater and a brick of parmesan cheese and lightly dusted the top of the salad with the cheese. Once Peter put the grater and cheese back on the counter top, he fetched a soup-cup and a ladle. Peter was certain that the potatoes were done by now, and he ladled his creamy soup into it, then placing it on the counter and sprinkling some leftover chives from the dressing.
Peter took a sigh of relief, knowing that he was a quarter of the way done. Peter looked at a cart near the exit of the kitchen, happy to know that he was ready to present his first dishes.
____________________________________________________________
The sound of wheels rolling on the tile coming closer to Celestia’s chambers got everyone inside intrigued. Peter came in pushing the cart with two dome-like metal lids covering the contents of whatever was inside.
“Well,” Celestia said, “I see you have your first two dishes ready to go.”
“I do,” Peter said, rolling up to the table and placing both dishes on the table.
Celestia, Luna, and Crème Fraiche walked down to meet Peter at the table.
“Which dish would you like to start off with?” asked Crème.
“Let us do the soup,” Peter said, lifting the lid.
While Celestia and Luna looked upon the soup with a smile, Crème couldn’t help but giggle at seeing how good Peter’s dish looked, happy to see how much he’s obviously learned. Spike could smell the steam wafting to him and Twilight, and he was beginning to drool.
“This is a potato and shallot soup with a milk base that was thickened with a roux,” explained Peter. “This recipe was inspired by a chef in my world named Julia Child, who featured a similar soup in one of her cookbooks.
Celestia was the first to take a bite, using one of the many spoons provided for her by Peter. Celestia was smiling as she tasted the contents inside her mouth, and Peter smiled in return, knowing what this meant. Upon swallowing, she made her verdict.
“It’s simple, but it’s very flavorful and rich. The potatoes have great consistency, and the shallots have a wonderful texture to them. This is great.”
“Thank you, Celestia,” bid Peter.
Luna was next, lifting her spoon up and putting it inside the soup. Her spoon contained at least one potato, some shallot slices, and the chive garnish. Putting the food in her mouth, she tasted her bite with a stoic expression, even as she swallowed.
“I know you don’t know me that well yet, Peter,” Luna said, “but I am usually not very fond of cream-based soups.”
Peter held back his grimace.
“However, continued Luna, “it would be unfair to judge you on my preferences, so I shall simply say that other ponies eating this would be very pleased.”
“Thank you, Luna,” answered Peter.
Lastly, there was Crème Fraiche. Peter’s feelings were a mixed-bag. Either she would be his most receptive or most harsh critic, having more culinary experience than he did. Peter just watched as she stepped up, took her spoon, and used it to put some soup in her mouth. It didn’t take Crème long to taste before she swallowed. Peter was on edge for her opinion.
“That is delicious,” Crème said with a wide smile, Peter giggling himself from her acceptance. “The broth has perfect consistency, and the shallots leave a nice crunch when you eat them. The potatoes are cooked beautifully, and… this is just a great dish. Thank you, Peter.”
“No, thank you, Crème,” Peter said, bowing to her with hands pressed flat together.
Peter looked to his father on the computer, who was beaming as he shook his clasped hands to the side in congratulations. Peter acknowledged his with a thumbs up and cheesy open mouthed smile.
“So next is the salad,” announced Celestia.
Peter removed the lid off the second tray to reveal the salad that Peter had prepared. The three judges were much more impressed by the plating here, and even Twilight from her angle could see how good the salad looked.
“This is a grilled romaine salad with tomatoes, green onion, parmesan cheese, and a gorgonzola green goddess dressing.”
“I’m sorry,” Crème wanted to clarify, “did you say grilled?”
Celestia was already grabbing her fork and knife as Peter explained his dish.
“Yes. I put the flat side of the head of lettuce on the grill for just a second to give it that char look and flavor.”
Celestia cut herself a bite and bit into it, already nodding in approval. Peter was excited to see her swallow so she could give him her critique.
“I would have never thought of grilling a salad, but I might have to ask for Crème to make some in the future, because that was excellent. The lettuce and dressing ratio was excellent, and that char really adds some phenomenal flavors.”
“Thank you, Celestia,” Peter spoke.
Luna was next, giving Peter another stern look as she cut her own bite with her own utensils and ate her morsel of salad. Her look was as unchanging as the last, and she swallowed, ready to explain herself.
“While I find the decision to grill a salad to be bold, there are some things you have to be careful for. One is the char flavor. If improperly done, you could burn the lettuce and it would taste bitter. Second, is your dressing. Gorgonzola is a powerful cheese and its umami flavors might enhance the bitterness of the lettuce. Except this wasn’t the case. The salad has noticeable grill flavor without the burn taste, and there is enough lemon juice and crème fraiche in the dressing to offset the gorgonzola flavor. Very impressive, Peter.”
“Thank you, Luna,” Peter said exasperatingly.
As Luna stepped back, Crème came up while lifting her set of given utensils.
“Quite the palate on her,” Crème said in relation to Luna.
“Yes, I agree.”
Crème took her bite. Peter was excited to see his muse swooned a little bit as she chewed her food. Upon swallowing, she took a second to inhale.
“That literally took my breath away,” she complimented. “And there’s hardly anything that I can say that Celestia and Luna have not said. Your dressing is creamy and tangy, and it works very well with the way you prepared your salad. There are plenty of tomatoes and onions in each bite and they really help give the salad more strength. You’re off to a very good start, Peter.”
“Thank you so much, Crème,” giggled Peter.
“Yes,” spoke Celestia, “but Peter has six more dishes for us to try, and his time for cooking resumes… now.”
“Thank you so much!” he called out before he broke back into a sprint with his cart in his grasp and headed back towards the kitchen.
“Twilight,” beckoned Celestia, “Spike. You must try this.”
Twilight and Spike were all too eager to come to the unfinished soup and salad, the latter running while the former trotted. Spike took a large spoonful of soup and ate it, blissfully swooning to the floor. Twilight herself took a bite of the salad. Her reaction was akin to Crème Fraiche’s, and she swallowed with a refreshed exhale.
“I think Peter may have this in the bag,” said Crème.
“There are still six dishes left, Crème,” answered Celestia. “But yes, I do believe he has learned much.”
========================================
On the one day he didn’t join Crème Fraiche in the kitchen. Peter looked at the plate of hot, crispy straw in front of him with disgust. He didn’t wish to be disrespectful to Crème, but he knew there was just no way that a human such as himself could stomach hay.
“Come on, Peter!” egged Twilight. “Everypony loves hay fries!”
“I’m sorry,” Peter said, “but humans don’t eat hay.”
“It’s alright, Peter,” said Celestia, “this is what we’re learning about you. I’ll ask Crème to make you something else then.”
“Wait,” Peter said, “I’ll try one. I just don’t want to make Crème upset.”
Celestia and Twilight watched as Peter picked up two strings of hay from the plate and put them in his mouth. Peter tried his hardest to hold his grimace, but he choked on his own sickened tears trying to do so.
It tasted exactly as it was supposed to sound: deep-fried hay. It was oily, yet dry and unpalatable. Peter tried his best to break the hay with his teeth, only for it to fray off into dozens of fibers which wouldn’t be chewed for the life of him. Peter heaved once, but his empty stomach produced nothing for him to vomit, but he still kept trying to eat.
“Peter,” called Celestia, “stop it! Spit that out!”
Peter did as he was told, trying to wipe his mouth full clean with his fingers and drink as much water as possible to get the taste out. Peter took a few inhales as he looked down at the mess he made on his plate. Peter began to whine, coming close to crying.
“It’s alright, Peter. I will tell Crème that hay is inedible to humans. I’m sure she’ll understand.”
“I’m sorry,” he sobbed. “I didn’t want to hurt her feelings…”
“I’ll take that into account. If I know Crème Fraiche like I know I do, she’ll gladly forgive you.”
Celestia left the hall, as Peter still wept, although not as hard as before. Twilight patted Peter on the back in condolence, knowing that he didn’t mean anything.
========================================
Peter whisked the truffle oil into his aioli as his hay fries were cooking in the fryers. His black bean burger patty was cooking up on the grill, and he had apple coleslaw in a large metal bowl that he was ready to top his burger with, as well as a small pot of barbecue sauce with apple cider inside of it. After seasoning his aioli with some salt and pepper, Peter flipped his burger over, seeing the nice blackened marks that the fires made going through the grates.
Peter went to the fries and lifted them out of the fryers. The ties he made to them still looked intact, giving them the appearance of actual fries and not shoestring potatoes. While the hay was still wet from the oil, Peter tossed them into another metal bowl and seasoned them once more with salt and pepper, then taking his grater and brick of parmesan, shredded some cheese into the bowl and tossed it around. Finishing with a little parsley, Peter placed the fries upon an ovular plate and lightly drizzled the aioli atop of them, putting a little more inside a small metal tub.
With only a minute left on the burger, Peter went to check on his bun that he halved and toasted on a pan in the stove. Having been left there under low heat, the bun was a beautiful golden brown.He went back to a plate on the counter and placed it there with both open sides face up. Peter then scooped some of the slaw onto the top bun and put it in a nice, even layer. Peter hopped to the barbecue sauce and grabbed the sauced and a ladle. Peter walked back over and poured a generous amount of sauce on the bottom bun and spread it around in another even layer.
With that now finished, Peter grabbed his spatula and got the patty off the grill, placing it on the bottom bun. Peter carefully, flipped the top bun with the coleslaw on top. Peter took a towel and wiped off any sauce or bits of coleslaw that escaped from the plate. His next two dishes were completed.
“Whoooooa,” sang Peter quietly to himself as he waved his arms in the air, “I’m halfway there…”
____________________________________________________________
Peter came back with his cart and two new dishes placed upon them. Peter’s reappearance in the room brought smiles to everyone’s face, Peter especially, who arrived more confident than ever after his last judging.
“He’s back!” shouted Spike.
“Calm down,” chided Twilight. “This food is for the princesses and Crème Fraiche. They were generous to allow us some bites, so wait until they let us.”
“Ughh. Fine.”
Peter put his two new dishes on the table for the approaching Celestia, Luna, and Crème.
“Alright, Peter,” Celestia asked, “which of your dishes are these?”
“This is my sandwich and appetizer.”
“Very good. Which one do you want to start with.”
“If it’s any trouble, I’d like to put both up and have you judge them at the same time. They do kind of go together.”
“No, that should be no problem at all. With the food you’ve been putting out, I’m all but eager to try whatever you’ve made.”
Without hesitation, Peter lifted up both lids, revealing his burger and hay fries. Peter couldn’t help but notice as Luna glared at the hay fries. Peter put it out of his mind, looking to his first judge, Celestia.
“And what is the sandwich?” she asked.
“This is a black-bean burger with apple coleslaw and barbecue sauce flavored with apple cider,” Peter answered.
“Coleslaw and barbecue sauce?” wondered Luna sternly.
“Yes. The apples were cut into matchsticks and were mixed with green and red cabbage, as well as some red onion for color, some mayonnaise, and some apple-cider vinegar to offset the sweetness of the barbecue sauce, which is tomato sauce, apple cider, as well as some brown sugar and molasses to thicken it up, among other things.”
Celestia took the single knife that came with the two dishes and cut it into quarters. Then, remembering Twilight and Spike, she cut one of the quarters into two eighths. Celestia picked up on of the quarters with her magic and put a large bite in her mouth, as to get every element of the sandwich without getting too much sauce on her muzzle. Celestia smiled at Peter as her cheeks were puffing from her chewing. Upon swallowing, she made her verdict.
“There’s definitely a lot going on in there, but it really works. The toasted bun, along with the coleslaw, provides a really pleasant crunch and yes, the tart coleslaw does make a good counterbalance with the sauce. Very nice.”
“Thank you,” sighed Peter.
“And what are these?” asked Celestia. “Hay fries?”
“If I’m going to be living in Equestria and running an Equestrian restaurant, I might as well make Equestrian food.”
“Not a bad decision, but I ask what these are?”
“They’re hay fries topped with parmesan, parsley, as well as a truffle aioli which also comes on the side. I gathered some of the hay, tied them together in manageable sticks using another piece of hay, and I snipped the ends off.”
“I do have to say,” Celestia said, peering inside the near, empty plate, “there’s hardly anything there.”
“I am trying to make time for my other dishes.”
“I see. I suppose the taste of the food shall be your winning factor here, not so much quantity.”
“I sure hope so.”
Celestia pulled one of the hay fries up from the plate and dipped a little more into the aioli. Celestia inserted the stick of straw into her mouth, her initial taste making her giggle. Peter wasn’t sure what it meant, but he had an idea.
“So funny that someone who despises hay fries…”
Peter blushed at the painful memory.
“…made quite possibly the best hay fry I’ve ever had.”
Peter was quite well aware of how old Celestia was, but to hear her say it was one of the best in her life was a compliment beyond all comprehension.
“I love what you did to give some structure to the fries, and the sauce they’re served in is astounding. I can certainly see why you paired these two dishes together, because they really work well together.
“Thank you, Celestia,” Peter shuddered out, beaming.
Patrick gave Peter a thumbs up on the camera, which Peter returned. However, Luna had returned with her stern expression, leaving Peter confused as to why she looked at him like this.
“I wish to try the fries first,” she said, lifting one up without dipping in the sauce. “It really disappointed me that there were so few fries on the plate, but I suppose given the time allotted, it couldn’t be helped. The point is, you made fries, and now all that’s left is to see how they taste.”
Luna put the fry in her mouth and chewed. Her eyes went a little wide, which surprised Peter. With a swallow, her mouth was free to talk.
“I agree with my sister that the fries are quite good, but some odd feeling tells me that the fries aren’t your idea.”
“I know they’re not,” Peter admitted. “I derived the recipe from this burger joint in the Midwest and wanted to bring them here to Equestria.”
“I have to ask you. Do you think you’re going to pass this test on the coattails of others?”
“I won’t pass this on the coattails of others, Luna. I’ll pass it on my own.”
Luna went to her own quarter of the burger, and lifting her section with her magic, she placed her teeth over the mere corners of the sandwich and bit down. To Peter, it hardly even looked like she ate anything at all. Luna, however, finished her chewing and swallowed, looking Peter in the eyes.
“I see genuine creativity in this burger. While inspired by chefs who’ve done similar things, I can see that this burger is one of genuine creativity, and it shows.”
Peter nodded in appreciation.
“One would think that such tart flavors of coleslaw on a burger would be, for lack of a better term, disgusting. However, you’ve saved this with your barbecue sauce. It has very rich flavors, and they work in tandem with each other. This burger would have failed if you left one and not the other. Perhaps I misjudged you.”
Luna stepped back as Crème Fraiche giddily walked up to the burger. She excitedly lifted her slice up to her mouth and bit down, a little of the sauce dribbling to the plate. It didn’t stop her from smiling like an idiot as she chewed and moaned in delight. With a hearty gulp, Crème began talking.
“I’ve always intrigued myself with making a gourmet burger, but never had the opportunity. I’m glad you gave it to me. I still can’t believe the bun is still toasty after the liquids on both the top and bottom would have probably softened it by now, but Celestia was right about the crunch in the coleslaw. And the patty itself has such great texture and flavor. Excellent. Now, on to the fries.”
Crème lifted one of the ten fries left on the plate and examined it.
“While it’s true that using another chef’s dish like that can be tacky, I highly doubt where you come from they use hay.”
“No,” answered Peter. “We use potatoes.”
“So there’s another thing. A good chef can take ingredients that they’re unfamiliar with and still make something out of them, and the technique you used to bind the hay together is wonderful. And the taste…”
Crème popped her fry in her mouth and savored it. Peter was expecting just a few words and an order to return to the kitchen. Crème swallowed and finished her statement.
“…is still excellent. I’m not sure how these fries taste on your world, but if they’re as delicious as those, I’d just say you nailed them perfectly. While creation is the cornerstone of any chef, still being able to replicate a dish can be tricky, and you still nailed this.”
“Thank you, Crème.”
“Alright, Peter,” said Celestia. “Now you move onto your main courses. You have made good time as of now, and have just under an hour of time left. You still think you have it in you?”
“I’ve already gone this far,” Peter said.
“That’s my boy. Your time resumes… now. Off you go.”
Peter grabbed his cart and ran back to the kitchen to prepare his entrees. Celestia gave Twilight and Spike another nod to some and have their own samples of Peter’s food, which Spike all but happily did.