Food: Taking the twins to kindergarten to be chefs

Time flies, like a white horse passing by, and the Lantern Festival is coming quietly.

After the Lantern Festival, Dolaimi Kindergarten will officially open.

Precisely because of this, early this morning, many parents actively responded to the kindergarten's deployment, packed their children's bedding and daily necessities early and sent them to the kindergarten in advance.

At the same time, for the newly joined parents, after successfully completing the payment process of Alipay, they also came to the kindergarten in advance as required to collect the children’s school uniforms, beddings and other items, and personally delivered them to their respective classrooms.

For a while...

The kindergarten classrooms became more lively.

In the classroom of small (4) class.

"Teacher Xie, Teacher Yang, Happy New Year..."

Ni Shujing stepped into the threshold, carrying a heavy bedding bag in one hand and holding a sweet little hand in the other, smiling as she gave belated New Year's greetings to Xie Jianing and Yang Yuxi.

"Happy New Year, sweet mom, happy New Year, sweet mom..."

Upon hearing the voice, Yang Yuxi and Xie Jianing smiled brightly. They simultaneously put down what they were doing and walked forward enthusiastically.

"Happy New Year, teacher..."

After Tiantian greeted everyone obediently, her eyes suddenly locked on Qingqing and Weiwei in the classroom, with excitement flashing in her eyes.

next second...

She let go of her mother's hand without hesitation and ran towards them with a look of joy on her face.

Tiantian squatted down beside Weiwei and shouted loudly, "Qingqing, Weiwei, Happy New Year!"

"Oh, Tiantian, your voice is too loud. My ears are going to be deafened by you~"

Weiwei was startled by Tiantian's sudden shout. She couldn't help but frowned slightly, pouted her lips, and said somewhat unhappily.

Tiantian pouted when she heard that.

Huh huh~
Weiwei is mean to her...

Shiitake mushrooms, blue skinny!
But be good, don’t cry...

"Happy sweet new year!"

Qingqing showed Tiantian a sweet smile, and reached out to gently rub Weiwei's little ears, reminding her in a baby voice: "Sister, Daddy said that we should get along well with our classmates and not be rude to them. Tiantian is saying hello to you~"

"Happy sweet new year..."

After hearing Qingqing's words, Weiwei showed an apologetic smile on her face. After politely responding to Tiantian, she immersed herself in the game world of playing house again.

Children's emotions are always like summer wind and rain, coming and going quickly.

Tiantian immediately smiled brightly and said happily: "Weiwei, let me help you build our little world..."

Before she finished speaking, she couldn't wait to join the game.

Yang Yuxi and others who were standing nearby couldn't help but smile knowingly when they saw this heartwarming scene.

Then, Yang Yuxi reached out and took the bedding bag from Ni Shujing's hand, and said gently: "Tiantian mom, leave the things to me, we will help Tiantian make the bed later."

"Thank you so much!"

Ni Shujing responded gratefully. At the same time, she looked around the classroom and exclaimed sincerely: "Teacher Yang, your classroom is so beautifully decorated. Even the ceiling is so elegantly decorated. Your hard work and ingenuity are reflected everywhere! But then again, is the competitive atmosphere between your teachers so strong? I see other classes are doing the same..."

Hey!
Are we the ones who want to “roll up” on our own initiative?

Isn’t it because of the various regulations and requirements of the kindergarten...

Hey!
All I can say is – it’s not easy to be a kindergarten teacher, so cherish every moment you have!
Although Xie Jianing and Yang Yuxi sighed inwardly, they still had warm smiles on their faces. They did not show their difficulty and just said lightly: "New semester, new look, the classroom must also be brand new."

Ni Shujing nodded in agreement and exchanged brief greetings with the two teachers.

At this time.

She noticed Huang Jun walking out of the dormitory. Although she was a little surprised, she also felt that this was a great opportunity.

She took out the red envelopes she had prepared in advance and handed them to them one by one: "Teacher Yang, Teacher Xie, and Chef Huang, this is a little gift from me, I hope you can accept it."

It is indeed a common phenomenon for parents to give gifts to teachers during festivals.

For Yang Yuxi and Xie Jianing, such scenes are nothing new.

But for Huang Jun, a kitchen worker, it was “the first time for a young lady to get married”!

He couldn't help but feel puzzled, not understanding why his parents would give him a red envelope. He quickly waved his hands and refused: "Mother Tiantian, you are so polite, but I really can't accept this red envelope!"

At the same time, Yang Yuxi and Xie Jianing also waved their hands and said in unison: "Mother Tiantian, we really appreciate your kindness, but we really can't accept the red envelope!"

On the one hand, Dolaimi Kindergarten has clear regulations that strictly prohibit faculty and staff from accepting red envelopes from parents.

Although it feels good to receive red envelopes, if something happens to your child in kindergarten and the parents bring up old issues and accuse the teacher of failing to fulfill his or her duties by accepting the red envelopes, it will cause great embarrassment and distress to both parties.

Teachers are naturally the last ones to see children have accidents in kindergarten, but accidents are always unpredictable and all they can do is try their best to reduce the possibility of their occurrence.

On the other hand, accepting red envelopes seriously violates the professional ethics and conduct of teachers.

As for the teachers of Dolaimi Kindergarten, they always stick to their principles and refuse any behavior that may damage their professional dignity and image.

Ni Shujing remained firm and said sincerely: "Chef Huang, Teacher Yang, Teacher Xie, this is really just a small token of my appreciation. Since Tiantian came to the Doraimi Kindergarten, her appetite has improved and her body has become much healthier..."

She gave the red envelope not to ask the teacher to take better care of her children like other parents did, but purely to express her gratitude.

The last time Tiantian was hospitalized due to Epstein-Barr virus, she and her husband were worried, fearing that there would be any sequelae.

But throughout the semester, Tiantian not only had a good appetite, but her body also became stronger. She didn't even catch a cold the entire winter.

You know, in the past, when winter came, Tiantian caught a cold every other day, which made her and her husband worry a lot.

Today, Tiantian is so healthy and lively, all thanks to the selfless dedication and careful teaching of the teachers, and the delicious meals carefully prepared by Huang Jun.

Those meals with balanced nutrition, good color, aroma and taste not only satisfy her sweet taste buds, but also nourish her body, making her more stable on the road to growth...

"Mother Tiantian, these are what we should do. You really don't have to be so polite!"

Xie Jianing and Yang Yuxi once again politely declined the red envelope handed over by Ni Shujing.

Seeing this, Huang Jun became even more determined not to accept the red envelope.

Seeing that Ni Shujing still insisted, he simply picked up Qingqing in one hand and Weiwei in the other, found an excuse, and hurriedly left the scene.

"Dad, don't you like red envelopes the most? Why don't you accept the red envelope that Tiantian's mother gave you?"

Qingqing still remembers that when Liang Yinqiu gave red envelopes to his father, his father was always happy to accept them, so he didn't understand why his father was so determined not to accept it today.

Weiwei also blinked her eyes with curiosity and asked, "Yes, Dad, why don't you want the red envelope from Tiantian's mother?" Huang Jun was stunned by the sudden question from the two little guys, but soon recovered and explained patiently, "Cooking in the kindergarten is Dad's job. She thanks me for it. If Dad accepted her red envelope, wouldn't Dad be a greedy person? Don't you think so?"

"Oh, is that so..."

Qingqing and Weiwei nodded in confusion.

Arriving at the entrance of the kitchen, Huang Jun said gently: "Qingqing, Weiwei, Daddy is going to the kitchen to work, would you two like to go in together?"

Weiwei blinked her lively eyes and responded coquettishly, "Daddy, there doesn't seem to be anything fun in the kitchen. Can I go play over at the playground?"

Qingqing also quickly agreed: "Yes, Dad, I want to play on the playground too."

Huang Jun smiled and nodded, and said, "Okay, then you can play on the playground for a while, but remember to pay attention to safety and don't run around..."

"I know, Daddy, don't worry! We definitely won't run around, la la..."

Weiwei and Qingqing responded happily, then ran to the play area hand in hand and played on the slide excitedly.

Just as the two little ones were immersed in the fun of the game, Tiantian ran out of the classroom happily and ran straight towards them: "Qingqing, Weiwei, let's play together!"

"Okay!"

Qingqing and Weiwei responded in unison.

Tiantian asked curiously: "Qingqing, Weiwei, have you noticed that there are only adults in the kindergarten today? It seems that there are few other children?"

Qingqing blinked her big eyes and explained, "Because today is the quilt delivery day, not the official school day, so many children didn't come..."

Tiantian shared excitedly: "Qingqing, Weiwei, my parents took me to Tiananmen Square to watch the flag-raising ceremony during the summer vacation. There were so many people!"

Weiwei was not to be outdone: "My dad also took me to the amusement park, it was so much fun!"

The children's topics were like jumping notes. One moment they were discussing things in kindergarten, and the next moment they jumped to their respective summer vacation experiences.

When Ni Shujing happily finished her conversation with the two teachers and walked out of the classroom, her eyes were immediately attracted by her daughters who were laughing and playing in the playground. She was even more surprised to find that the two children turned out to be Qingqing and Weiwei.

Ni Shujing immediately had an idea in her mind. She thought that since she had not been able to give the red envelope directly to Huang Jun before, giving it to his child would show the same intention.

Having made up her mind, she showed a warm smile on her face and walked towards Qingqing and Weiwei, handed over the red envelope in her hand, and said gently: "Qingqing, Weiwei, look what little surprise auntie has prepared for you."

"don't want……"

When Qingqing and Weiwei saw the bright red envelopes, they immediately remembered their father’s previous instructions. Their little heads shook like rattles at the same time and their little hands subconsciously retracted. Then, hand in hand, they ran away like a gust of wind.

Ni Shujing looked at their lively and lovely backs with a helpless smile on her lips.

Hey!
It seems that the red envelopes I carefully prepared today are destined to not be given out...

Qingqing and Weiwei trotted across the corridor and came to the kitchen hall.

They looked around and found that their father was no longer outside, so they knew that he must have gone to the operating room to work.

So, the two little guys sat down obediently at the dining table in the dining area, waiting patiently for their father to return.

Huang Jun, who had no idea that his two precious daughters had arrived, was busy in the operation room, preparing to make dumplings first!
It’s the Lantern Festival!

Only by eating a bowl of hot dumplings can we say that we have truly celebrated this festival.

Seeing that all the ingredients needed to make dumplings were ready, he took out a clean large bowl and poured glutinous rice flour into it.

He picked up the kettle and slowly added water to the basin, stirring gently with chopsticks as he added until the glutinous rice flour turned into small pieces like cotton wool.

When he had mixed it almost done, he started kneading the dough with his hands.

Knead and knead...

Once the dough becomes smooth and elastic, set it aside.

Next, he began to prepare the fillings for the dumplings.

Process the black sesame seeds first.

He put the pot on the stove, turned on the fire, and poured the prepared black sesame seeds into the pot.

He turned down the heat, picked up the spatula, and slowly stir-fried the black sesame seeds in the pan.

This step looks simple, but it is actually quite particular.

Be careful when stir-frying so that the black sesame paste does not accumulate at the bottom of the pan and every sesame seed is heated evenly.

He stared at the black sesame seeds in the pot, stir-frying them while paying attention to the changes. The black sesame seeds became drier and drier, and wisps of green smoke rose.

When a particularly strong black sesame aroma wafts out...

He quickly turned off the fire, poured the black sesame seeds into a plate, spread it out and let it cool down slowly.

The temperature when frying black sesame seeds is very important.

As soon as you smell the fragrance, you must turn off the heat immediately, otherwise the sesame seeds will be over-fried and become bitter and astringent.

When the black sesame seeds were no longer so hot, he poured the sesame seeds into the plastic bags one by one, spread them out on the workbench, and gently crushed them with a rolling pin to break them into pieces.

But it should be noted that sesame seeds should not be ground into fine powder, so as not to lose their unique taste.

Just crush it moderately to fully release the aroma of sesame seeds.

The ground black sesame seeds were poured into a bowl, and the diced lard that Qian Guoxiang and his team had cut earlier, as well as an amount of granulated sugar that was about the same as the lard, were added, and they began to mix the stuffing.

He kept kneading it with his hands. The sesame seeds were still a little warm, and the granulated sugar quickly melted into the filling, acting like a glue, sticking the sesame seeds and lard together, finally forming a shiny filling ball.

He put it on a large chopping board and, together with Qian Guoxiang, rolled the fillings into small balls slightly larger than glass balls. These small balls were the fillings in the glutinous rice balls.

After all the fillings were kneaded, he asked Meng Hongze to put them in the refrigerator to cool down temporarily, and then he took Qian Guoxiang and others to start making the outer skin of the dumplings.

They took out the glutinous rice dough, divided it evenly, rolled the dough into long strips, divided them into small pieces one by one, and then kneaded and flattened the small pieces one by one to form thick small round cakes.

They picked up the small round cake, placed it in the palm of their hand, and gently pressed and rotated it with their thumb to make the center of the small round cake concave, shaped like a wine cup.

The glutinous rice dumpling skin is now ready.

When Meng Hongze brought the cooled fillings from the refrigerator, they each took one and put it into the glutinous rice ball skin, then slowly pinched the skin together to seal the mouth tightly.

After sealing, place it on the chopping board and gently press it with the palm of your hand to make the glutinous rice balls rounder and better looking.

Just like that, the beautiful Ningbo glutinous rice balls are ready.

"Huh? Chef Huang!"

Ye Guilan was watching intently, and suddenly thought of something, and couldn't help but ask curiously: "Did we forget to add these sugar osmanthus flowers?" (End of this chapter)