What makes lump of floor doused in maple syrup, puts on a crown of a nuts become THE royale Butterscotch Walnut Cinnamon Roll?
To be sure, one should not by mistake or haste, decides that this sweet and spiraling pastry is one that is eager to help extinct urgent desires for an afternoon goodie. You might well be eating a very depressed one if you’re not careful. So always try to get to know your dessert before eating them.
well today, we have here Norbie the Cinnamon Roll that was served to me at the Starbucks here at Queensbay mall, Penang. Out of serendipity i thought i should get to know my pastry before letting them into the deepest end of my gut. To some, that’s a very well guarded place in thought and in emotions. And no sugars should be seen messing with it. So I started talking to Norbie.
Just as an introduction, Norbie has been in the fridge for a week now. His companions had not been quick to leave him for a better place. So i wouldn’t say that he was deprived of society. Perhaps it was mainly because of that, which lead me to a sense that he was a little hesitant before he allowed me to even get an eye contact from him (He later would apologise and said that the walnuts were in his eyes).
After spending some time with Norbie, I believe his parents from the local pastry supplier really cherished him. Throughout the conversation, he addressed me as Ma’m, very soft spoken, very articulate and very proud to have made into the selection of pastry lineup in a Starbucks store. Apparently pastries, according to their different cuisine, style, and catefory were to go through several assessments and tests, the results from which would determine which restaurant or cafe they get assigned to. I’m actually beginning to feel sorry for the fate of these breads and pastries. The training phases are more torturous than any military programme any human can go through. I mean, take the kneading station for example, every dough-lings had to jump into a pool of 500 other baby doughs, clutch onto the kneading blade with all their might, and the other end to the base of the giant metal bowl. When the blade moves, they are to cling on as tight as they will ever grasp anything or anyone, and be stretched, overstretched, folded and reverse folded, snapped off and broken up and then returned to the pool again, left to themselves to find the rest of their bodies (They usually can instinctively do that, except when their baker made a different decision). – Now try get a human to do just that?
It was a relief for me to know that Norbie wasn’t attached to another pastry. I wouldn’t be able to enjoy him as fully if i knew that his heart was already removed for someone else. He told me though, that he nearly made the friendship of a very sweet smelling, matured, solemn and altogether heavy and solid Volkornbrott, a German sourdough bread. She was filling herself up in the “sun room” as Norbie called the factory oven. Before breads and pastries begin their testing rounds, they would be lined up in multi level steel drawers. Trolleys upon trolleys of these drawers would be kept together for the waiting period. It was then that Norbie, at his corner of his “battalion” stole a glance at Trissa (strange name for a German), who was at the corner of another trolley. “Her intense smell, and brown sturdy crust, her sponging (thats how breads refer to each other’s internal qualities) can only be true and supple and even more intricate than a honeycomb cake” Norbie shared, and he recounted the moment she returned his glance – “…i could feel my air bubbles pop silently…”. At this point, we both laughed so violently i thought i could hardly eat him anymore. “It would have reignited the sticky maple syrup had i not control my feelings in time”. This is when i fell off the chair.
But if Trissa was too quick to be given the Queen’s seal, Norbie was equally confident when he and his teammates faced his examiner’s probing pin, spatula, and some aerosol spraying action. Eventually he was placed into a cardboard box, which he was lifted onto the final test – Dull Freeze Endurance – in passing that test, each box of pastries would be given their final grade, which comes in the form of a sticker label, indicating their final destination. For Norbie, he said he couldn’t believe that he made it into Starbucks. Among the pastry gossip circle, Starbucks is the much hailed world-class cafe that is serving food and coffee to millions of humans in every country in the world. I had not the heart to tell him that he was only made to believe so, and that the “testing rounds” were merely a carousel of routine preserving procedures – Not an assessment of merit. I just told him that i was really proud of his achievements and that I was most honoured to have ordered for his service. I wanted him to beam at himself before he sees the last of the world, and remember, if he could, that a cinnamon roll as he made a human smile so bright and in content.
“So, Ma’m, am i supposed to go to your sun room now? I still have some space here if you want me to carry more of these nuts, i could hold quite a lot, and i promise i won’t go out of shape” Norbie broke the short silence we had while i decided how to take this story.
“Hah, Norbie, no, you ‘ve worked hard enough during your time in the factory. I want you to just enjoy being a beautiful pastry now.” I returned with a difficult smile, but a smile that can deceive a pastry.
“Ok…. but wasn’t i trained to serve you? That’s what the bakers told us” He gave me a half confused look, half suspecting that i was a joker.
“That’s very true. And you’ve learned very well. Now i want you to recall, what did your baker say about bringing happiness to your human’s life?” I quizzed him.
Norbie only broke into a wide smile and let out chuckle, “I knew you would ask me that question. I hold it to my heart every single day once i knew what i was supposed to do as a cinnamon roll.”
I laughed with him.
“I have this little button right inside here, this air bubble right here. Chet told me that when you asked, it shall be my obligation to press that button myself, and magic will happen for you.” Norbie looked very satisfied as he explained, although one could easily tell that he didn’t completely know what he was talking about.
“Then Norbie, are you ready to do it now?”
“I can’t wait, Ma’m. I’ll show us magic right now!!” That was the cheekiest face i ever saw from him. Which was the last animation on his face.
Just like making a pause in a movie, Norbie, froze into the cheeky face he held as he pressed his “thaw and serve” button.
Now, i’m left with the Butterscotch Walnut Cinnamon Roll, in between a fork and knife. Warmed up and sticky with maple syrup that is in its perfect consistency. As i removed the piece of baking paper underneath, there it was, the Queen’s Seal – A Promise of Excelence, in every bite.
Thank you, Norbie, you didn’t know that you were the yeast, you were the soul of the cinnamon roll. From the texture of the spiraling bread ring, i could only say that you were a pretty awesome soul.
snout sniffer 