Sugar and Spices

Summary: The royal siblings get together to bake some seasonal treats for their visit to Avalor.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

A/N: Sibling bonding time! 😊 And this is my, what, 173rd Wassailia story involving sweets? Haha! Anyway, hope you enjoy!

Note: By the way! There is an actual recipe for the treats mentioned here in the story. :D Just look up the title Chef Andre says. I may just make them myself... :p

*Story*

"Who else is hyped up about going to Avalor in a few days?" James asked a little too loudly, causing the staff helping out Chef Andre to snicker.

Amber rolled her eyes and folded her arms, smirking at her brother. "I'm pretty sure the only 'hyped' one here is you, James. How much sugar have you ingested today anyway?"

"Ingested. Nice word, sis." He grinned as he tried to juggle a few apples before the chef grabbed each one out of the air, to his disappointment. "Aw."

"Children," Chef Andre began as patiently as he could, offering them a strained smile, "as thrilled as I am to have you as visitors in the kitchen, I would ask that you please refrain from juggling the food items…"

"Actually, Chef Andre," Sofia started gently, garnering his attention, "we just came to see if we could make some sweets for our trip to Avalor. We'll stay out of your way as much as possible. It's just that Princess Elena and her family are probably going to have some for us, so we wanted to make sure we returned the favor."

"Ah, I see… Well, if you would like, I can show you how to make petits fours, tiny cakes with any flavor you wish."

"I don't know if those would survive the trip, Chef Andre," Amber lamented as she cast a weary glance at her twin, who seemed to be anticipating the previously mentioned recipe.

Catching on, James grinned. "I know what you're thinking, Amber, and I'd save at least three for the Avaloran group."

"James, there are far more people over there than three! Ugh, your stomach is getting in the way of things…"

Considering the princess's dilemma, the chef tapped his chin before smiling. "I have an idea. Wait right here." He turned and headed into the pantry.

Sofia looked back at her siblings. "It must be a good idea… He seems sort of excited about it."

"That was 'excited?'" James laughed. "Wow. Guess I've been overdoing it all this time."

"More than you know, brother," Amber teased with a giggle.

Chef Andre walked back toward the children and handed Sofia a recipe, which appeared a bit old. "My grand-mère began this recipe years ago. It's for stardust cookies."

"Stardust?" Amber gasped and grabbed the recipe from an unsuspecting Sofia, gaping at the ingredients. "Oh, my goodness! This is perfect! And it has to do with stars! Ah! Chef Andre, you're a certified genius."

The man laughed. "Well, I do have a higher than average intelligence, but I appreciate it, Princess Amber. Would you three like my help making these?"

"Aren't you busy?" James asked as he looked past the brown-haired man toward the other chefs in the kitchen.

"They can manage for a while. I actually used to make these for my Gwen when she was a little girl. They were always well-received."

Sofia giggled. "Little kids and sugary treats…always a sure bet, Chef Andre."

He chuckled. "All right, let's get the ingredients together, shall we?"

With the kids' helping, things went a lot faster than usual. For the cookies, they gathered butter, sugar, flour, coloring for food, and powdered sugar for the end result.

"We'll begin with a cup of softened butter," Chef Andre explained as Amber measured out what was needed. "Pour it into your mixing bowl." He nodded as she did so. "Very good. Princess Sofia, I need you to pour ¾ cup of sugar. Prince James, from you I need 2 ½ cups of flour." As they measured out their requirements, the chef continued, "Right. Now carefully and gradually, pour both into the bowl with the butter."

Sure, a little flour might have escaped James's measuring cup, but over all, they did manage their task. At least they weren't working with spices... That could have been a real mess.

"Okay, Princess Amber, I need you to stir that mixture until it's nice and light…fluffy, even."

Amber nodded and began stirring the batter. She was pleased to find it wasn't as hard as she thought it would be, and unlike James, she didn't manage to make a mess. "What do we do now?"

"I have here three small bowls." The man placed each indicated bowl before them. "One will have red coloring; one will have green; one will have gold. I need you all to divide the batter into the three bowls, and each of you will stir your portion separately."

This part took a bit more time, because it involved transferring and splitting, but they managed the feat without much hassle. Once each child had a bowl of batter, Chef Andre added in some coloring. Sofia received red, James received green, and Amber received gold; and then, of course, each mixed in the color to their dough. Once finished, he handed each of them a food storage bag and had them seal them up.

"We must let our dough sit for 20 minutes in a cool location. Meanwhile, I'll make sure the oven is nice and hot. Prince James, if you'll check the pantry, you will find some star-shaped cookie cutters. Please bring those out."

Once the dough was chilled enough and the oven was operational, the chef opened each bag and began kneading the red dough first. "We must get it quite limber, so we can create some actual cookies. I think it's starting to give a bit now." He grabbed one wooden chopping board and placed it before Sofia. "Princess Sofia, here you are." He placed the dough on her board and handed her a rolling pin. "Roll the dough out until it's not too thick yet not too thin. When finished, cut out as many star patterns as you can."

"All right," Sofia answered with a nod as she began working.

He gave the twins the same instructions, and before long, several red, green, and gold star-shaped dough figures were finished. He placed each one onto a few baking pans and slid them into the oven. "It won't take long for them to finish. Once done, we can add the final ingredient."

James grinned. "Powdered sugar! My old friend…"

"Seriously," Amber sighed with an amused smirk, "did you douse your head in sugar today?"

"I'm just naturally happy and excitable." He grinned. "It's why you love me."

"Yeah, that's why…"

Chef Andre gathered three new cups and passed one to each royal before pouring some powdered sugar in each. "Hang on to these. Won't be long now."

When the cookies were finished baking, now a darker shade with slightly browned edges (perfection, the chef realized), the prince and princesses gently dusted thin layers of powdered sugar onto each cookie. By the time they were finished, the stardust cookies looked as though they'd just been through a snowstorm.

"They're perfect!" Amber gushed happily.

"If I do say so myself, yes, they are," Chef Andre laughed. "And it wouldn't have been possible without you three, so thank you, Your Highnesses."

"Thank you, Chef Andre," Sofia corrected with a smile. "Your cookie recipe saved the whole treat situation."

"Well, you're all quite welcome. Here, we can put your cookies in these cannisters." He took a few from one of the cabinets and carefully slid the cookies into the storages before handing them over to the children. "I hope your friends in Avalor like them."

"What's not to like?" James grinned. "Everybody loves cookies!"

The kids all thanked Chef Andre again before leaving the kitchen.

The man chuckled and shook his head. "So glad our future rulers appreciate good baking. Says a lot for Enchancia…" He smiled and looked back at his staff. "All right, lads! Let's pick it up! Dinner service begins soon."

"Yes, sir!"

The end