Chapter 10 秋天的童话
重阳藕片炒菱角，
穿堂过巷寻印糕，
寒露明月竹间照，
扁豆酱瓜满碗勺。
Chapter 10 Fairy talesaboutAutumn
Double Nine Festival braises lotusroots with caltrops,
Kidsgo through alliessearching for themoldedrice cake,
The Cold Dewreflects the moonshines through bamboo forest,
The spoons are full of lentilsand pickled zucchini.
普天同庆的佳节到来之日，学校各个班级的黑板报上布满了喜人的画作和感人的文字。操场上升旗仪式的国歌尚萦绕耳旁，就不知不觉地迎来了重阳。登高在这一马平川的泥沙堆积岛是不能实现了，但家家户户院内尽带黄金甲并不罕见。醉蟹在这个季节不再应景，闻着桂花，藕菱的芬芳，舔着手指吮鲜蟹黄的时节已至。香脆爽口的藕片配上粉糯鲜滑的菱角，是解荤腻、去腥膻的不二之选。
The National Day sees the school blackboards filled with gratifying paintings and touching texts. Meanwhile, the national anthems accompany the coming of Double Nine Festival whose ritual starts with the chrysanthemum rather than ascent. Instead of liquor preserved crabs,lotus root and caltrops, as well as the fresh crabs are the main dishes now. The crispy and refreshing lotus roots braised with the smooth and sleek caltrops match best the currently greasy crab.
此时上市的莲藕用处极多，因为性凉且易消化，对于发烧生病的孩子，简直是比米粥上口多了的备选进食方案。天气转凉导致的呼吸道疾病一度让上学的孩子成片中招，于是，妈妈常常在厨房用一个锅熬着藕粉汤，另一个锅炖着生梨川贝，药食共进。
Lotus roots withthe cooling disposition and easiness for digestserves as the ideal alternative meal for sick children with high fever other than porridge. The respiratory illness caused by the cold weather becomes contagious among the classmates. Hence momwill simmer the lotus root soup in a baking dish as staple, and stew the raw pear with tendril-leaved fritillary bulb in a casserole as medicine.
当然，疾病挡不住这个重阳美食的步伐。崇明话里的“蟹”和“啥”都同音为“哈”，所以上海知青刚插队落户到崇明岛，听到“我吃哈，你就跟着吃哈吧”的客气话，一度认作是对方请吃蟹，激动得不行。这个节气崇明除了清蒸蟹的经典做法，还有一道面拖蟹同等味美。把蟹一劈二，面疙瘩粘在蟹的表面后红烧，由于面粉饱享了螃蟹肉的鲜醇丰美，加上入口的滑韧嚼劲，几乎成了整道菜的主角，蟹本身则让贤于主食了。
Of course, the disease will not stop the pace of festival cuisine development. Interestingly in the Chongming dialect, the "crab" and "what" are pronounced the same as "ha", so Shanghai downtown residentswill mistakeeach meal invitation as a crab dish supper. In addition to the classic practice of steamed crabs, another way to cook a crab related delicacy is call rice flour simmered crab. Because the flour absorbs the richness of the crabmeat, its yummy surpasses the crab even.
红楼梦中的重阳就是尝过了薛蟠的几篓蟹，最后用黄酒收尾来祛蟹寒，结果一时兴酣，海棠诗社，菊花诗社就应运而生。可见这时令美食对人类创造力的促进作用。所以，重阳的创造性糕点也由此登场。崇明糕和叫喊着卖出的重阳糕对于崇明娃来说大同小异，无非是糕里混入不同的内含物。然而，印糕就与众不同，它的流心内馅儿虽然直到近些年才时髦起来，但在崇明当地，向来是孩子们的甜点首选。
As stated in Dream of Red Mansions that the crabbanquet can generate some excellent poems about the event. Thus it seems todeduct that certain seasonal food will promote human creativity. As a result, a creative and delicious pastry appeared—molded ice cake.Different from Chongming cake, the ice cakewith liquid stuffing has not been fashionable until recently, but in Chongming, it has long been the first choice as children's desserts.
印糕的米糕表皮相比崇明糕更加薄软通透，还用模具印着不同的字样，是为“印糕”。内馅儿分为白糖桂花、红豆、芝麻，绿豆，但最难舍却的味道就是白糖桂花的流馅。由于米糕外皮的作用，蒸完后的白糖与桂花彻底相融，淳美香溢得不可方物。
The rice cake skin thinner and softer compared with the Chongming cake. In addition, as the name suggest, the cake is molded withdifferent word written on the surface according to its different stuffing, for example, white sugar and sweet-scented osmanthus, red beans, sesame, and green beans, among them, the white sugar being the most popular. Due to the perfect blending of innersticky riceand the white sugar after steaming,the cake tastes amazingly yummy.
掌心大小的正方形印糕，把对重阳节的流连延展到“玉露凋伤枫树林”的寒露。此时的夜间露水不再像白露那么剔透温润，而是寒意淡淡近乎霜了。月光也不似之前的清丽朦胧，而是清冷孤幽得让走夜路的行人都不禁望月遐思。想那“举杯邀明月，对影成三人”的李白不也是在这番场景里感受到月下独步的妙处。
The palm-sized square rice cake extends the festivalhappiness till Cold Dew when poem describes as "jade dew withers the maple forest". The night dew is no longer as clear and moist as in the white dew season, but chill to frosty. The moonlight is unlike what kids see earlier in the summer, coldness and lonelinessare the primary traits.
如果再穿过一片竹林，则幽深静寂得更冷清。崇明农家的竹林会根据家庭需要，宅前屋后都栽种一两亩竹子护院。于是，从挖春笋到剥冬笋，从抓鸡蛋到龙虾杆，这些竹林留存着孩子们脆亮的笑声，也见证了无数恶作剧的悄悄话。月下竹的影影绰绰，径上叶的悉悉嗦嗦，让这一路风景虽寒意日深，却寥落得恰到好处。
Walking through a bamboo forest makes onefeel quieter and lonelier. Bamboo forest is a must for every big family to nurse homes. Thus, from digging spring bamboo shoots to peeling winter bamboo shoots, from catching eggs to making lobster poles, children retain their crisp laughter andmischievous whispers in the forest wherethe scenery is rightly poetic despite its chilliness.
白天的秋收已经日渐忙碌，稻谷沉甸甸地等待镰刀，棉花爆开了满口白牙期待粗糙的双手，泛金的桔子盼望采摘的剪刀。家里的院子也是一派繁荣：崇明话称做“洋扁豆”的白扁豆正在日夜疯长，这一款特产要配上以本岛青皮生瓜为原料的酱包瓜一起清炒，酱瓜的皮薄肉厚、嫩里带脆，与扁豆的质地细密、丰满粉润相得益彰。这是一道早上配粥回甘，中午配饭下饭，晚上煮汤提鲜的百搭食谱。唯一缺陷就是扁豆此时虫害也日益严重，常常在剥白扁豆时被里头的白虫唬得反胃。
The daytime in autumn harvest is getting busy, the rice is waiting for the sickle, the cotton bursts open with white teeth looking forward to rough hands, and the golden oranges look forward to the scissors for pick up. The home yard is also prosperous. White lentils, “foreign lentils” in Chongming dialect,are growing wildly fast day and night. Again such specialty should be served with thelocal sauce melon that is made by domestically grown zucchini. The skin of the pickled cucumber is tender and crispy while the texture of the lentils is fine and plump. This is a versatile recipe for porridge in the morning, lunch at noon, and soup at night. The only drawback of lentil during this period is the pest attack it receives.
十月就是这样，在学校花坛里的一串红上研究寻找着铃铛似的采蜜口，在麻雀突然闯入教室和屋里的瞬间忘乎所以地欢呼，在骑车回家的路上突然被湛蓝清澈的天空与夕染镶金的云彩所吸引，停车暂出神。
This is October. Scarlet sage is attracting honey seekers. Hungry sparrow suddenly broke into the classroom arouse cheerful attentions. The way back home by ride is fascinated by the clouds of gold and silverbrims which hold the ride unconsciously for a while.
