Raining. Copy-write P Audcent 2014
“Oh its raining again,” Judith sat at the bay window looking sadly outside as the window pane was drenched with water. Her mother was mixing a cake in her huge bowl and she looked toward her daughter.
“Well Judith there is always something you can do inside the house, why there is cleaning up your bedroom for a start, or playing with your tablet Grandpa gave you for you birthday or you could ask Jean next door over to play, or you can help me fill the paper cups with the mixture I am making.”
Judith thought for a while then leaped off the bay window seat and rushed to help her mother fill the cup cakes.
“Can I put hundreds and thousands on the top of each Mother.” she asked softly.
“Well on half of them the others we will cut in half once they are baked and cooled and we will fill the insides with strawberry jam and fresh whipped cream.”
“Why does the cream have to be whipped?” Judith looked up to her mother.
“Well whipping the cream makes it much firmer and wont drip when we spoon it out onto the cakes. I'll tell you what, whilst I cut the cakes in half I will show you how to use the kitchen whisk and you can whip the cream, nowadays we like to use the mechanical whisks or even the electric whisk. But my mother, your Granny, often told me that hand whipped cream tasted the best!”
And so they spooned the mixture into the paper cups leaving room for the mixture to rise and then Mother placed the trays into the hot oven to cook. It took just a few minutes and out they came all lovely and brown. Judith went to the fridge and standing as tall as she could gently lifted the cream bottle off the shelf and bought it to the table. Mother undid the lid and poured the cream into a large glass dish and started to beat and whip the cream.
“Now you see how I hold the dish firmly and did you notice I placed it on the damp cloth, that will help to stop it moving around, so come around here Judith and up you go you onto the seat and start whipping the cream like I showed you. When its ready the cream will hold onto the whisk like glue!”
Judith did as she was told and carefully started to whip the cream, but Mother said to be a lot harder.
“My mother, your Granny, used to say put some more elbow grease into it, and I will show what she did once she had finished.”
So whilst her mother cut half the cakes in half Judith gave a solid performance in hard whipping.
“I think it might be ready Mother.” said she holding up the whisk with a huge blob of cream sliding off the whisk.
Mother took the whisk and bowl and gave it a further whipping until small peaks appeared and then she placed the whisk on the table and upended the bowl above her head. Judith was so startled that she stepped off the chair to get out of the way, but the cream stayed exactly where it was.
“There,” said Mother, “Its perfect now lets fill those cake halves.”