Birthday Cake
My brother, Tom, always asks me for the same birthday gift every year. He does not ask for toys, shoes, or a bike. Instead, Tom always asks for my famous birthday cake! Cake is a delicious dessert covered in sweet, gooey frosting. You can eat cake any time of year, but birthday cake is traditional. After dinner, the birthday boy or girl is presented with a cake decorated with lit candles. The birthday boy or girl makes a secret wish, blows out the candles, and shares the cake with the guests. Cake can be made in many different flavors, but my famous cake is chocolate with vanilla frosting. Tom's birthday was last week, so I got his annual request. I baked the cake, now I will tell you how I did it!
First, I measured the flour, sugar, and baking powder. Then, I added eggs, butter, milk, and cocoa powder. I mixed the ingredients together and poured the batter into a pan. I baked the cake in the oven for 30 minutes and then the cake cooled off. Finally, I combined sugar, butter, and milk to make the frosting. I covered the cake in the thick vanilla frosting and we all had a slice. It was so delicious!
Vocabulary
Famous: known about by many people
Frosting: a mixture of sugar and liquid used to cover cakes and cookies
Traditional: something that has been done by specific people for a long time
Ingredients: the food items combined to make a dish
Combined: put together
Batter: the mixture used to make a cake or cookies before it is baked
Vocabulary Exercise
Match the sentence with the correct vocabulary word to fill in the blank.
1. Grandma made a list of ________ for her soup; chicken, onions, carrots, broth.
2. When my brother and I made salsa, we ______ the tomatoes, jalapenos, and onions.
3. We mixed chocolate chips into the ________ before we baked the cake.
4. On her birthday, Miranda shared vanilla cupcakes topped with chocolate ______.
5. Making a wish before blowing out the candles is ___________ for American birthdays.
6. Everyone in town loved my mother's cookies. Her recipe was ________.
A. Famous B. Frosting C. Traditional D. Ingredients E. Combined F. Batter
Grammar Point: Regular verbs in the past tense
Verbs are action words, such as jump, mix, and play. If you are talking about an action that is happening right now, you do not need to change the word. However, if you are talking about an action that happened in the PAST, you need to change the word. Most verbs can be put into the past tense by adding "-ed" at the end. For example, you jump right now, but you jumped yesterday.
Grammar Assignment: Reread my blog post on my famous birthday cake. Write down every regular verb in the past tense (look for verbs that end with -ed!). Then, write the present tense of these verbs.
For more information on regular verbs in the past tense, follow this link!
http://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/grammar-vocabulary/grammar-videos/past-simple-regular-verbs
First, I measured the flour, sugar, and baking powder. Then, I added eggs, butter, milk, and cocoa powder. I mixed the ingredients together and poured the batter into a pan. I baked the cake in the oven for 30 minutes and then the cake cooled off. Finally, I combined sugar, butter, and milk to make the frosting. I covered the cake in the thick vanilla frosting and we all had a slice. It was so delicious!
Vocabulary
Famous: known about by many people
Frosting: a mixture of sugar and liquid used to cover cakes and cookies
Traditional: something that has been done by specific people for a long time
Ingredients: the food items combined to make a dish
Combined: put together
Batter: the mixture used to make a cake or cookies before it is baked
Vocabulary Exercise
Match the sentence with the correct vocabulary word to fill in the blank.
1. Grandma made a list of ________ for her soup; chicken, onions, carrots, broth.
2. When my brother and I made salsa, we ______ the tomatoes, jalapenos, and onions.
3. We mixed chocolate chips into the ________ before we baked the cake.
4. On her birthday, Miranda shared vanilla cupcakes topped with chocolate ______.
5. Making a wish before blowing out the candles is ___________ for American birthdays.
6. Everyone in town loved my mother's cookies. Her recipe was ________.
A. Famous B. Frosting C. Traditional D. Ingredients E. Combined F. Batter
Grammar Point: Regular verbs in the past tense
Verbs are action words, such as jump, mix, and play. If you are talking about an action that is happening right now, you do not need to change the word. However, if you are talking about an action that happened in the PAST, you need to change the word. Most verbs can be put into the past tense by adding "-ed" at the end. For example, you jump right now, but you jumped yesterday.
Grammar Assignment: Reread my blog post on my famous birthday cake. Write down every regular verb in the past tense (look for verbs that end with -ed!). Then, write the present tense of these verbs.
For more information on regular verbs in the past tense, follow this link!
http://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/grammar-vocabulary/grammar-videos/past-simple-regular-verbs
I like how you described the tradition of a birthday cake and included the recipe! I think your exercise and grammar point are great and I love how you included a link for additional help.
ReplyDeleteI like how you provided the steps on how you make your famous birthday cake. You also used some great vocabulary words that would help students to understand the paragraph better.
ReplyDeleteI am also the family birthday-cake maker. Excellent entry!
ReplyDelete