Coffee has a very distinct aroma and flavor and today it is one of the most consumed drinks all across the world. It is made from the roasted seeds of a coffee plant. This plant is mainly found in Latin America, Southeast Asia, India and Africa. Coffee is something that many people need to get through their day. This is because of all the caffeine that it contains and the energy that it gives people for their everyday lives. Coffee has been around for about 500 years now and as time goes on so does the love for the hot drink.

Over the weekend I had this cheeseburger from a restaurant near Sacred Heart University. It was possibly the best burger I have ever had. The reason this is, is because the way it was prepared and cooked to perfection. I ordered it medium rare and they cooked it absolutely perfect. Then the chef melted cheddar cheese and then followed three crispy onion rings. Then three slices of bacon, a slice of lettuce then, topped it off with the fresh bun. When I took the first bite of the burger I tasted heaven in my mouth. The Onion Rings gave it that extra crunch and flavor, along with the lettuce giving it extra crunch for that mind blowing bite. He used cheddar cheese which you could actually taste when you chewed. And the base, the burger couldn’t have been cooked any better. This was possibly the best burger and I thought I’d share with you what made this ultimate dinner so good! Tim K

BAKING HAIKUS

Cookies:
Soft, warm, and gooey
oatmeal, chocolate chip
cookies are the best

Brownies:
Yummy chocolate
Brownie mix baking in oven
I can't wait to eat

Cupcakes:
Sprinkles and frosting
on top of a mini cake
made by the dozen

Blueberry Muffin:
Healthy, sweet muffins
with bright blueberries inside
I ate half the batch

Pancakes:
Circular, golden
with maple syrup on top
I can't get enough



Emma B

Last weekend, my mom and I went to the mall and she found a short rib sauce for her slow cooker and she made that last night. The recipes was for short ribs over mashed potatoes so, I took the mashed potatoes portion band she handled the ribs. I made homemade mashed potatoes with just plain old Idaho potatoes but I put some of the short rib juice in there to flavor them at the end. Finally, my mom made sauteed spinach and carrots with time as a side dish and they were very good. She likes to make that a lot because she had it at a restaurant in Hartford but it was actually on a pizza. It was a like thin sliced carrot and spinach pizza and now she makes it without the pizza. Personally, I love to have spinach cooked down with; red pepper flakes, garlic, shallots and a little feta cheese. I came up with it one day when I was home alone and wanted to have a healthy lunch. I love a lot of garlic so I instantly grabbed that and since I had no proteins I just grabbed a tub of spinach. The recipe is actually really simple, I put some oil in a pan and brown up garlic and shallot, then I add; salt, pepper, garlic powder and red pepper flake. Finally, I put the spinach in until it is cooked down and add toasted almonds. Today, I was driving into school with my mom and she said she wanted to go to Figs this weekend. She went a few weeks ago and said that it was very good. I was just wondering if anyone could tell me any reviews or what they might serve to see if I want to try it. I haven’t heard anything about it from anyone but my mom and she really isn't a great critic, she doesn't ever like to say negative things. We once went to this really bad restaurant in Brookfield and when my dad asked if she liked it all she said was that the menu looked very nice. So, I was wondering if anyone could help me get an idea of what Figs serves and how the actual food is. Connor L.

My favorite part of baking is seeing how pretty you can get your dessert to look. I love baking cakes and cupcakes just so i can be able to decorate them to the best of my ability. I was actually so interested in decorating cakes, I took a cake decorating class when i was 12 and I didn't even care that i was the only person under 60 in the class. I think it is something to do that is so fun it is impossible to get sick of it. Right when you think you've learned everything your introduced another technique you can use to make your decorations look even better! Whenever I get the opportunity to bake a cake for an event I do. This is a cake I decorated for my friends birthday this past summer. I hope we have fun decorating cakes and cupcakes this year in baking and pastry!! Natalie P.

            A few days ago, I woke up and wanted pancakes. After making them in class, I looked around for all the ingredients, but we didn’t have everything and I was the only one home. I did find some store-bought pancake batter though, so I decided to use that. I knew it wouldn’t be the same as what we made in class, but it would be fine. As I was looking around the kitchen, I opened up the spice cabinet, almost by accident and the cinnamon sugar caught my attention. That was one ingredient that we used in class that I knew I could use at home too. So I mixed up the pre-made batter and poured a little onto the griddle. Then I sprinkled some cinnamon sugar onto the top liquid side. I flipped the pancake when I saw the little bubbles and then immediately sprinkled some more cinnamon sugar onto the top, cooked side. It was still hot, so the sugar melted almost immediately onto the surface. When the bottom side of the pancake was done, I took it off the griddle and dumped on some more batter. Before I put any cinnamon sugar on that one, I tested the first pancake out. I drizzled a little hot maple syrup onto it and dug in. The flavor was incredible, and there was a bit of a crust on the outside of the pancake. The sugar must’ve caramelized on the pancake. I made a few more after that, all with cinnamon sugar of course. From now on, the only way I can really enjoy a pancake is if it’s cooked with a little cinnamon sugar. I never would’ve even thought to try that if I hadn’t seen it done in our class the other day. This class has made me want to make more things on my own at home.
Jake L.