Kitter Keep
Willow Sap
Prized as a treat that Meeps and Kitters love, willow sap is found inside the trunks of misty oaks. Its mouthwatering, sticky sweetness is followed by a surprisingly bittersweet aftertaste. The sap is named after the fact that the tree most Kitters gather it from is a variety of misty oak called the foggy willow. It is one of the few sweet liquids that cannot be found on Googators.
Willow sap is not just used as food, however. When heated, the sap will evaporate into a sweet, soothing pink mist. On hot days, some Kitters like to leave a small bottle of sap open to let the sweet scent spread throughout the house. The sap is also a primary ingredient in many perfumes and natural medicines.
Sourpines
Originally from The Tropics, Sourpines are one of the most sour fruits to grow on Ostaria. Just a little bite will send a shock of sharp sourness through a Kitter’s mouth. Many Meeps like to dare each other to take a bite of one of these fruits.
On hot days, many Kitters like to drink Sourpine juice. The Sourpine juice that can be found in the market is actually a watered down version sweetened with sugar so that the sour taste isn’t overpowering. Only Kitters who have a love for sour foods will enjoy pure Sourpine juice. When the Sourpine is cooked, it loses its tart sourness and gains a very rich, sweet flavor. Because of this fact, the Sourpine is valued by bakers for being a key ingredient in both sweet and sour treats.
Addendum by Jerri the Baker: In The Tropics, the Sourpine was used by the natives in almost every meal they made, with the sour fruit serving as one of their main dishes, the juice used to add flavor to other dishes, and its cooked form serving as a sweet dessert. The reports from the first mapping expeditions in The Tropics record the explorers saying that the fruit was a wonderful delicacy that they regretted wasn’t available anywhere else on the continent.
Today, the Sourpine serves as one of The Tropics’ main source of income. The fruit is imported to every corner of the continent and can be found in all sorts of foods, including many of the treats that you see in my bakery. Lots of bakers and gardeners, such as myself, have tried to grow the Sourpine in gardens outside of The Tropics, but these have resulted only in sweet Sourpines that lack their trademark sourness. As a result, these failed attempts have been nicknamed Sweetpines. Many botanists and bakers, such as myself and Nimby, are still trying to figure out what allows the Sourpine to gain its sour flavor by growing in The Tropics.
Moonberries
Known for blooming every full moon, Moonberries are a mystical fruit that only grow in Kitter Keep. They are known for having a heavenly flavor that is said to be beyond mere words. Anytime a Kitter tries to describe what these berries taste like, they find that they can’t think of any description that is even remotely adequate. All they know is that no other food has ever tasted so good.
Moonberries are unique for the fact that they only flourish on a full moon. When a berry is picked, its bloom withers and falls off. Once the full moon ends, the berries and anything they have been mixed in instantly becomes spoiled to the point of being inedible. Moonbrick Farm holds a Moonberry Festival every full moon to which every Kitter in town is invited. Moonberry pie, jams, cookies, and a variety of other treats are all baked for the festival.
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The leaves at the base of the Moonberry plant stalk possess potent healing properties. Unlike the berries, the leaves of the Moonberry plant does not lose their power when a full moon ends. When made into a poultice, these leaves can cure any minor injury. The small amount of Moonberry plants has prevented this poultice from being mass produced, unfortunately.
In addition to their lunar bloom period, these small silver berries are also named for their round, moonlike appearance. The inside is known for having the appearance of a night sky. Constellation enthusiasts have noted that the constellations inside the Moonberries are identical to the ones seen in the sky at night.
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Addendum by Nimby the Herbalist: The Moonberry plant is one of the most frustrating scientific conundrums in botany. This plant is unlike any other plant. Rather than resting in winter and blooming in spring, these plants blossom every full moon, no matter what the weather is. They seem unaffected by extreme heat or cold. The only thing that can prevent their growth is transporting them more than fifty feet from the town’s borders. Once they are taken this far, they instantly wither.
Flowers bud from the tips of the stalk, developing into Moonberries on a full moon. These berries have a soft, porous texture. The constellations found within the Moonberries may prove that these fruits have a connection to the light element. However, the fact that void Kitters have no negative side effects from eating these suggests otherwise. I have decided to team up with Kitter Keep’s resident expert on magic, Hekate, to conduct an in-depth study on these plants in hopes of discovering how they might be grown in areas other than Kitter Keep.
A sweet, sticky treat made from the wool of Toxic Fluffels, Kitters of all ages love eating this. When it was first introduced to the public, it was dubbed “Rotten Candy” by those who were suspicious of a food made by poison affinity Kitters from the wool of a poison affinity creature. To boost sales, an entrepreneuring Kitter struck up a deal with a light affinity Kitter. The poison Kitter would make the candy while the light Kitter would sell it under the name “Fairy Floss.”
This plan proved to be extremely successful. Within a decade, Fairy Floss became a signature treat seen at carnivals and festivals. As demand for the treat grew, businesses abandoned their suspicions of Rotten Candy and began accepting the Fairy Floss directly from other poison affinity Kitters. Today, most Kitters only know this treat as Fairy Floss, with the name Rotten Candy only being known by lovers of trivia and history.
Fairy Floss
Elly
A sweet substance made by Alge, Elly is highly valued for its ability to boost a Kitter’s elemental abilities for a brief amount of time. Elly possesses different flavors and elemental properties based on the Prisma flower that it is harvested from. There are six types of Elly, each corresponding with one of the six original elements:
Ember Elly: Sweet and spicy, Ember Elly is extremely flammable. Some Kitters who live in the Grand Forest use this food as fuel for their fires. When a Kitter who possesses an affinity for fire or an element that is connected to fire (metal, smoke, explosives, sin, or electricity) eats this, their elemental abilities are boosted for a couple hours.
Ocean Elly: Sweet and creamy, Ocean Elly quenches both thirst and hunger. Adventurers who travel to Charfire Desert often bring Ocean Elly, as it serves the purposes of both food and water. When a Kitter who possesses an affinity for water or an element that is connected to water (ice, smoke, ink, poison, or luck) eats this, their elemental abilities are boosted for a couple hours.
Breezy Elly: Sweet and sour, Breezy Elly makes Kitters feel carefree, relaxed, and unfocused. It’s a good snack to eat when you want to relax, but avoid it if you have something important to work on. When a Kitter who possesses an affinity for air or an element that is connected to air (ectoplasm, energy, ice, weather, or electricity) eats this, their elemental abilities are boosted for a couple hours.
Rocky Elly: Sweet with a hint of chocolate, Rocky Elly becomes as hard as stone when dried. Kitters eating this don’t have to worry about it hardening in their mouths, as it requires extreme heat to dry. Some Kitters who have a way to generate large amounts of heat use Rocky Elly as a type of superglue. When a Kitter who possesses an affinity for earth
Illustration from Hekate's research notebook
or an element that is connected to earth (metal, plague, bloom, weather, or ink) eats this, their elemental abilities are boosted for a couple hours.
Bright Elly: Overpoweringly sweet, Bright Elly glows in the dark. It is sometimes used as paint due to this, being placed on store signs to attract night customers or on walls by graffiti artists. When a Kitter who possesses an affinity for light or an element that is connected to light (luck, bloom, energy, balance, or explosives) eats this, their elemental abilities are boosted for a couple hours.
Night Elly: Sweet with a bitter aftertaste, Night Elly absorbs light, causing the area they are in to become dimmer. Scientists are currently studying Night Elly to see if its ability to absorb light can be used by law enforcement to peacefully disable a light affinity criminal’s elemental abilities without a Nullstone. When a Kitter who possesses an affinity for void or an element that is connected to void (ectoplasm, sin, plague, balance, or poison) eats this, their elemental abilities are boosted for a couple hours.
