Quills: the Rise of the Northern Matriarch-Chapter 77: Change of Allegiance 3

"I can teach you how to make them. We have everything. We could use some more fruit for the compotes. I will make them for us tonight, so you can see how easy it is," Nora explained. This society had round griddle surfaces and similar tools. Those tools were used for different purposes.

"I promise I will sit on my stool like I did last time. I know that you must be worried, but it will be fine," Nora said. The main ingredients for Crepes are eggs, milk, water, butter, salt, sugar and flour. She did a mental inventory.

"Has the delivery come yet?" Nora asked. They had that and some delicious cow unadulterated raw cow milk that Vida was sending over today. Nora's mother was from France and with her recent shock, Nora wanted to feel closer to her Mother. She started to drool thinking about the filings. There was no chocolate yet, but fruit and whipped cream would be excellent toppings. She was sure that they would be a hit among the family and that they would be too overwhelmed by the choices and novelty to ask annoying questions. Nora placed Astra in their play area and skipped off to the kitchen full of excitement. She returned with frozen fruit for the children and ran back.

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"Yes. I will unpack them. You do not need to run, be careful, Flower." Cerez said exasperatedly. She finished creating the small batches of compote. Before going on to create the batter. Attaining the perfect consistency requires a few steps.

"Cerez, sweetie, come here!" Nora said in a sing-song voice, that they all could mean happiness, or it could be a foreboding warning to perform an odd task for her. Cerez headed to the kitchen. As Nora always said, "if you cannot beat them, join them." and that, was also foreboding for him. But he, in his own way, asked for it. He could not even sigh. She had just had a very hard day. "Since the mixer has not yet come from Sedai yet, I need your arms for this Cerez." Nora said as she grabbed a large bowl.

"Your arms will hurt after this." Nora teased as she poured cream into the bowl. It was nice to have ties to Halid. Nora hummed and grabbed the whisk Kadir had made for her. She moved her arms beating the cream.

"Flower." Cerez whined, reaching for the bowl.

"Alright, keep stirring these hard until you notice that it's starting to clump up, the more clumped up the better." Nora said, rolling her shoulders.

"Thank you." Cerez said with some relief. He took the bowl and ruthlessly whipped the cream like she was. Nora prepared the cheesecloth. "It is starting to separate, interesting. We just add a natural compound to the cream at home to make our own cheeses. This is the fat in the milk," Cerez said.

"You are right. Now some people like salt in their butter. I am not a fan," Nora said.

"You know how to make cheese?" Cerez asked, discovering another layer to his spouse.

"Yes, there are only a few that I know how to make from my past. They are similar to soft cheeses, but firmer and stronger in flavor. One needs specific conditions," Nora said. She really knew, she liked to know how the things she ate were made. It was easy in her past to browse the internet for recipes and videos. "Can you dump that in the mesh bag and do it again? We will need more. I have to drain off the buttermilk. We will use it later." Nora said.

'Using a byproduct, interesting,' Cerez thought. He watched Nora fascinated. Nora gently pressed the butter until it was a harder mass. He poured another batch of cream in the bowl and frantically whipped the contents until he repeated the results. He rolled his shoulders. She was right. He was getting sore. Nora looked at Cerez sympathetically, he was going to have to do it again. She knew that he was going to hurt later, and he would not even complain. He was the best kind of kitchen helper. They had a lot of fun in this kitchen. She was excited to have the privacy, but she honestly was going to miss Allurai, Leilanna and the others. It was nice to have people outside the Bind to talk to. Cerez proceeded to copy her in draining off the butter by himself and forming a ball. He was such a quick learner. Cerez was next in line to her as being the best in the kitchen. As soon as she imparted all of her knowledge.

"Alright, I will make the first batch of batter, write this down and observe." Nora said, getting into her 'Professor Nora' voice. "We are going to make butter and whipped cream to set aside for later. For our family, we are going to make a smaller-sized recipe than we will later. It will taste better tomorrow. We will need six eggs, three cups of flour, one and a half cups of milk, one and a half cups of water, a lot of salt and six spoons of butter." Nora read off the ingredients as he typed. Nora mixed all the wet ingredients. "Mix all the liquids first. It is important to do this or little lumps will form. Next we will sift the flour into the mixture." Nora turned on the griddle when she was satisfied after whisking.

"As you can see, it has to be really mixed. We will make a bigger batch in the test kitchen." Nora said, showing him proudly the consistency she had reached. She transferred the mixture to a pitcher so she could easily pour it onto the griddle. She added butter to the griddle, swirling it around with a spatula. Cerez watched her carefully. She added the thin batter and it formed perfectly. She quickly created a pile of crêpes. "Next I will make the last topping, whipped cream. It is better fresh." She added cream and a little sugar to a bowl and whisked it rapidly, forming peaks within a couple of minutes. "Here!" she said smiling, so stuck a spoonful of whipped cream in his mouth. "Is that not just worth all the effort?" Nora said, leaving the man spellbound. It was delicious. He loved being alone with her. He nodded. The truth was he was having a hard time not becoming the stereotypical Matriarch worshiping Alphem that he loathed. He used to find his father's actions awkward. But he understood now.

'Twins. I am going to be a father to two of my own daughters. I am going to be double named. What are we going to do?' Cerez thought. He was still shocked.

'Janel will think of something. I really do not want to alter one of them. I am not sure Halid will be able to bear the pressure they would bring if we do not differentiate them from each other. ' Cerez thought.

"Okay let's put them together". She made two crêpes for each of them and took two small bowls of compote and whipped cream for her children. They brought them out on platters.

"Alright everyone. This is a special dish that my mother taught me. In honor of her name, I ask that we name one of the newest children 'Fiona'. It is an apt name for a child of the Halid as it is derived from the word vine. They bring us all sorts of fruits, and they are nature's original rope. 'Ivy' was my sisters name. It was also a vine plant. Cerez, I hope I can too use this name." Nora said, her eyes glistening. In the words of her homeland. She truly hoped they enjoyed their meal. Nora sliced her crêpes. The food here truly tastes better. No preservatives, it was fresh and there were copious amounts of it. Sirona sucked whipped cream and the compote off of her own messy hands. Astra was reserved and awkwardly manipulated her spoon, practicing her motor control.

"Yes." Cerez said, he dropped his tong set, tears dripping from his eyes. This was an honor for her to name their children after two people she wanted to honor.

"I never asked you what your name meant." Liem said.

"It means 'honor.'" Nora answered.