After being dragged to the kitchen Daisy ran off excitedly talking about finding only the best competition for her and I was left on my own to make the cake. I really thought that Daisy would've liked to make it with me to make it more special for if and when she wins. It's fine though...
While in the middle of my thoughts (and gathering the ingredients for my cake) a rather distressed looking Ike runs in.
"Hey...um...Peach, can I help you with making the cake" he said, looking behind him as he closed the door to the kitchen.
I looked at him suspiciously. "So you came here...to help me make a cake...are you joking or are you actually being serious right now?"
He rubbed the back of his head a little nervously. "I'm here to help...honestly...sooooo how can I help?"
Woah, so he's really being serious right now. Someone actually wants to help me make my cake? He's not the person I wanted to help me (Daisy why did you have to leave meee) but he's nice enough to want to help me...I'll give him a chance...maybe he actuality knows something about baking...
"Well you can start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees. Then can you prepare the three 9-inch cake pans by buttering them lightly? Oh and after you can start sprinkling the pan with 1 tablespoon sifted cocoa powder...but make sure you tap the pans to coat them and discard the extra cocoa powder."
"Well then..." he began, chuckling. "It sounds like I got my work cut out for me..."
He turned away from me grabbing three circular pans and began coating them with butter mean while I turned back to my ingredients on the table.
I began creaming 1/2 cup of butter and 1 1/2 cup of sugar together, adding in two eggs, one at a time and beating them vigorously until they are fully mixed in. Next I started adding in 2 teaspoons of vanilla, looking back to Ike who had just finished with the pans.
He turned back to me smiling. "I'm done so can I do something that is more baking related?"
"What do you mean" I replied, laughing a little. "Preheating oven and buttering pans are baking related."
"You know what I mean" he said chuckling. "Can I do something that has to do with mixing ingredients and stuff?"
"Have you baked before?"
"No, never...this is my first time..."
"Ok. Come...you can help me with the batter."
He hesitantly walked over to me and I took my place at his side, guiding his hand gently and helping him blend the mixture while he added in the remaining 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder and food coloring.
"See...your a natural. You should bake more often" I told him, smiling.
"Thanks but I don't get that much time to do things like this often" he said bluntly focusing back on stirring under my guidance.
I wonder what me means 'I don't get much time to do things like this often'. Maybe it's because of school or it could be because he's male. There are never really any male bakers around because apparently baking it a 'female thing'. It's just biased if you ask me.
"You I think you're done stirring now Ike" I said, waiting for his reply but it didn't come automatically. "Ike?"
At the second time I called his name he was brought back into reality from whatever he was thinking.
"Huh, what was that Peach" he asked quickly.
"Oh I just said that you don't have to stir it anymore..."
"So what's next?"
"All that's left to do is to mix together the rest of the dry ingredients together and then add them to the mixture we just finished stirring."
"Oh I got this..."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes Peach, I'm sure...plus you've helped a lot already so you can take a break for now."
"Alright...if you insist" I replied, sitting down at one of the tables.
I watched him slowly gather the remaining dry ingredients and sift them together before mixing them into the mixture from before and adding in the buttermilk.
"There done" he said stepping away from the batter and smiling.
"Great" I replied, grabbing the pans he buttered earlier. "Now all we have to do is pour the batter into these three pans and put them in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes. I'll pour the batter and you put the pans in the oven alright?"
"Sure" he replied.
I started pouring the batter in slowly hoping to not have it overflow and got the first pan done quickly. I handed it over to Ike and began with the second one, finishing it then handing it over to him once again, then did the same with the final pan.
Once we were done and all the pans were in the oven Ike turned back to me.
"Sooooo now what..." he asked, looking a little bored.
"Now" I began, double checking the pans one last time. "We wait."
"Hmm...that seems a little boring to me " he said smirking while walking towards me with his hand behind his back.
"Ike what are you..."
Just as I got those words out a handful of flour was thrown onto me.
I gasped looking down at my dress and when I looked up I saw Ike still smirking.
"Oh really...that's how it's going to be...alright then" I said, throwing a handful of flour at him.
Those were the first shots fired which ended up leading us into a flour war...one that really stained us...