Chapter 116.2

Finally, Xiao Tangyuan and Xiao Roubao finished a bowl of egg yolk rice porridge together. Xiao Tangyuan had a small appetite, and most of it ended up in Xiao Roubao’s stomach. Only then did Xiao Roubao feel satisfied and stop making a fuss.

The appetizingly sour and refreshing pickled vegetables, paired with soft and glutinous sausage, made for a satisfying meal for the whole family.
After a nap, the family continued to work. They remained busy throughout the afternoon. After Han Cheng returned, the family quickly finished their noodles and continued cleaning the kitchen. It wasn’t until eight or nine in the evening that they thoroughly cleaned both inside and outside the house.

The two little cubs had already eaten their fill and slept soundly.

The older cubs were so tired that they lay on the mat and didn’t even want to take a shower.

However, lying in a house that they had worked so hard to clean, with the air fresh and everything spotless, they felt an immense sense of accomplishment.

Fantuan suggested, “Mom and Dad, cleaning is so tiring. Can’t we clean only once every two years from now on?’

Su Xiaoxiao said, “It’s because we didn’t thoroughly clean last year when we went to your grandma’s house for the Lunar New Year, that’s why it got so dirty. If we clean every year, it won’t get that dirty.’

Da Bao and Xiao Bao strongly agree, “We also have to move everything to the river to wash every year at home, but last year it was too cold and the river froze. We only washed it quickly, grandma will probably work very hard this year.”

Su Xiaoxiao said, “Hurry up and take a shower with your dad. Tomorrow, I’ll make delicious food for everyone. Let’s heat the oil and fry some New Year snacks!’

The kids cheered and followed their dad to take a bath.

……………

On the 29th day of the lunar month, they fried New Year snacks in hot oil.

The sugar rings’ are made by mixing glutinous rice flour with sugar, shaping them into various forms, and deep-frying them in oil. In Su Family Village, the most favored shape is a flower, which looks particularly beautiful when fried.

There wasn’t a lot of glutinous rice flour prepared, so Su Xiaoxiao encouraged the kids to use their imagination. Each could make two, shaping them as they liked. Once they were fried, they could either eat them or give them to their friends.

While the children made the sugar rings,’ Su Xiaoxiao made sweet deep-fried dumplings.

The process for the oil stick was a bit more complex than the sugar rings, but Su Xiaoxiao preferred eating these herself.

She mixed eggs into the flour, avoiding water as much as possible, then added fine sugar, powdered milk, and a little baking powder to form a smooth dough. She wrapped the dough in a clean cloth and let it rest for half an hour.

After the dough had risen, she rolled it out thinly, cut small circles similar to dumpling skins, and set them aside.

The filling was made by roasting peanuts until fragrant, grinding them into a paste, and mixing them with an equal amount of fine sugar.

The method of wrapping was similar to making dumplings. They filled the dough, folded it, and pinched it to create a beautiful pattern, then fried it over medium heat in a pan with oil until it turned golden brown like an egg yolk. Once it floated up, they took it out, let it cool, and it was ready to eat.

The remaining scraps weren’t wasted by Su Xiaoxiao. Once fried, they turned into delicious egg puffs.

These small, deep-fried dumplings were crispy, fragrant, and sweet. Taking a bite left a lingering taste that made people unable to stop eating it. They could finish one in just two or three bites. Even the adults, after eating one, wanted more.

Although there was no filling for sugar egg puffs, it was still very delicious.

The combination of milk and egg flavors melted in the mouth, making it incredibly delicious. Moreover, the deep-fried dumplings stuffed with peanuts and sugar inside looked even more delicious.

The cubs eagerly watched as the deep-fried dumplings floated up one by one in the frying pan, and their saliva was almost dripping into the pot.

Su Xiaoxiao wanted to cook as many as possible and have the cubs deliver some to Xiao Yu and Dundun.

Su Xiaoxiao took the freshly cooked deep-fried dumplings out of the pan and gave one to each cub to eat.

After finishing one, even the obedient Xiao Doubao, who wasn’t usually greedy, asked, “Mommy, can I have another one? This is the best snack Xiao Doubao has ever had, so delicious~~~”

Xiao Fantuan eagerly looked at his mother.

Even though Da Bao and Xiao Bao occasionally had them during the New Year, Grandma was reluctant to use up all the ingredients. She didn’t want to utilize all the eggs and milk powder, so naturally, it was not as crispy and delicious as the ones made by their aunt.

“Auntie, we also want to have another one.”

Su Xiaoxiao softened her heart and allowed each of them to have one more. “You really can only have one more; otherwise, you’ll eat them all before the New Year.”

The cubs are not greedy; just having one more is already satisfying for them. Happily, they run errands and deliver the hot dumplings to Xiao Yu and Dun Dun.

As a result, halfway through, they met Xiao Yu’er and Dundun who were also coming to deliver things to their house. The three cubs exchanged things directly on the way, chirping about how delicious their homemade snacks were.

Xiao Yu said, “My mom made a deep-fried pancake stuffed with peanut sugar, it’s so soft and delicious!”

Dundun and their companion replied, “My grandma made big fried dough sticks. A small lump of flour turned into a big soccer ball-sized crispy treat!”

Xiao Fantuan didn’t argue with them, afraid they might sneakily eat on the way back. He said, “The deep-fried dumplings my mom made are just okay. Taste them later when you get home; we’re busy today and need to help at home. Let’s all go back to our homes.”

The three groups of cubs exchanged their goods and went their separate ways to find their mothers.

It wasn’t until Xiao Yu and Dundun returned home and tasted Su Xiaoxiao’s deep-fried dumpling that they realized what they had missed. The soft, crispy egg puff with a hint of milk powder, combined with the peanuts, was incredibly delicious. After the adults tried one, they hid the rest and didn’t allow the kids to have more!

Xiao Yu and Dundun accused Xiao Fantuan of being a big liar. If he had told them how delicious the deep-fried dumplings were earlier, they would have eaten a couple more on their way back. A big liar, indeed!

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Deep-fried dumplings

Sugar Rings

Sugar Egg Puffs