K.Esquivel-LWFC

make the best of it. Cautiously, the two of
them read over the
infernal recipe, step by step, trying to make
sense of it.
"`If the syrup is to be clarified, as it must be
to sweeten liquors,
after the previous procedures have been
completed, tilt the pot or
saucepan containing the syrup, let stand,
and decant, or in other
words, pour off as carefully as possible to
separate the syrup from the
sediment."" The recipe did not explain what
the ball stage was, so
Gertrudis ordered the sergeant to search for
the answer in a huge
cookbook that was in the storeroom.
Trevino was making a real effort to find the
information they needed,
but in fact he barely knew how to read; his
finger slowly followed the
words, as an impatient Gertrudis looked on.
"`Candy syrup has many degrees of cooking:
soft thread stage, firm
thread stage, soft pearl stage, firm pearl
stage, blowing stage,
pouring stage, solidifying stage, and
caramelizing stage, soft ball
stage "Finally! Here's soft ball stage,
General!"
"Let's see, bring it here! You've been driving
me crazy.
Gertrudis read the instructions to her
sergeant, quickly, in a loud
voice: "`To test if the syrup is at the soft ball
stage, moisten your
fingers in a glass or jug of cold water and
pick up some syrup,
immediately dipping them back into the
water. If the syrup forms a
soft ball when it cools but handles like a
paste, it is cooked to the
soft ball stage." Understand?"
"Yes, at least I think so, my general."
`v-"You'd better, because if you don't I swear
I'll have you shot!"
At last, Gertrudis had managed to gather all
the information she'd been
seeking; only one thing was left now and that
was for the sergeant to
do a good job making the syruthen she could
finally eat the fritters
she craved so much.
Trevillo was very much aware of the threat
hanging over his head if he
made a mistake while cooking for his
superior; he completed his
mission, despite his inexperience.
They were both ecstatic. Treviflo was the
happiest.
He brought Tita a fritter himself, carried it up
to her room on orders
from Gertrudis to get Tita's stamp of
approval. Tita hadn't come down
for lunch and had spent the afternoon in bed.
Trevino entered her
bedroom and set the fritter down on a little
table Tita used for just
such occasions, when she ate there rather
than in the dining room. She
was grateful for his attentiveness and
congratulated him, since the
fritter really was delicious.
Trevillo said he was sorry Tita was
indisposed; he would have been
delighted to ask her to dance at the party
being held on the patio to
say good-bye to General Gertrudis. Tita
assured him she would be
delighted to dance with him, if she decided to
come down to the
party.