2010年11月24日 星期三

文匯報互動英語教室 (6) - Can I cook?

文匯報互動英語教室之《餐廳篇》將帶你到中西餐廳學英文!



Lily and Louise are the hosts of “Quick and Easy Recipes”. It is one of the highest rated live TV cooking shows that presents the preparation of easy-to-prepare (容易煮的) food. One of the things the audience (觀眾) love about this show is that the hosts showcase (展現) produce from a different country each time and invite a local chef to prepare the items.

Lily and Louise invited a chef to demonstrate (示範) how to make a simple yet tasty pasta. Unfortunately, he couldn’t come because of a car accident. They could not find another chef to cover for him with such a short notice. Louise suggested to Lily that they could cook together. Lily hesitated (猶豫) because she lacked experience and self-confidence (自信心). Daniel, a 5-year-old cook, was in a buoyant (活潑的) mood when he knew that the chef was unable to show up. He volunteered (自發) to teach them how to make a smoked bacon penne pasta (通粉).

Louise: Hey guys! Welcome to “Quick and Easy Recipes” I am Louise.

Lily: I am Lily.

Louise: Today we are going to make a quick and easy smoked bacon penne pasta.

Lily: You need the following ingredients: penne pasta, smoked bacon, olive oil (橄欖油), garlic, parmesan cheese (巴馬乾酪芝士) , salt and pepper.

Lily got so nervous she forgot what to do next. Louise reminded (提醒) her to take out all the utensils (用具).

Louise: chopping board (砧板) , fry pan (平底鍋), tall pan (高身褒) and colander (濾鍋). Now fill the tall pan with water and place it on a high heat (高溫). Add a little bit of salt and olive oil.

Lily added a large amount of salt to the pasta unintentionally. (非故意地) Louise tried to suppress her anger and continued making the pasta.

Louise: When the water is boiling. Add the pasta and cook for 11 minutes. Now. Place the frying pan on a high heat. Fry the bacons and garlic until brown.

Lily put the unpeeled garlic in the frying pan and forgot to switch off the stove after 11 minutes. Overcooked penne was a sodden (過濕) pile of pasta that was not very appetizing!

Louise: Serve the pasta and bacons on a plate and sprinkle (灑) the parmesan cheese on top.

Daniel could not hold his laughter when he saw them cooking. Lily was annoyed when she saw Daniel laughing at her. She was thinking how to best get revenge on him and finally decided to invite Daniel to taste the pasta!

Smoked bacon penne recipe:

1 package dried penne pasta
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 cup chopped smoked bacon
3 tablespoons minced (切碎) garlic
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Questions:
1) Name the ingredients that you will need to make a smoked bacon penne pasta
2) Name the utensils that you will need.

Answers:
1) penne pasta, smoked bacon, olive oil, garlic, parmesan cheese, salt and pepper.
2) chopping board, fry pan, tall pan and colander

2010年11月11日 星期四

文匯報互動英語教室(5) - A vertical garden

文匯報互動英語教室之《餐廳篇》將帶你到中西餐廳學英文!
我的直立式花園!



Lily does not care about environmental protection (環保). She uses all kinds of single-use disposable (即棄) plastic products including trash bags (垃圾袋), cups, plates and bottles. Her friends keep telling her that plastic is one of the major toxic (有毒的) pollutants (污染物) and disposal (處置) of plastic products on land makes harm to soil. Unfortunately, she completely ignores all their advice and keeps using plastic products.

Lily is suffering from allergies (敏感) because of the poor quality of the air in her office. She complained to the property management company (物業管理公司) several times but for some reason her efforts didn’t take. She gave up finally. She felt asleep after a busy work day and had a strange dream in which she met Angel of the Forest…

Liz: Would you like to join me for a coffee and cake?

Lily looked at Liz quizzically (疑惑地).

Lily: Who are you?

Liz: I am Liz, Angel of the Forest. Why do you use so many plastic products?

Lily: Why not? They are so convenient. I can just throw them away after a single use. I never wash the dishes. I’d rather spend more time on playing online games.
Liz: Do you know many plastic products contain harmful chemicals?

Lily: I don’t care.

Liz: Oh! You are wasting paper and killing trees for nothing!

Lily: Who cares? I live in Hong Kong, a polluted big city anyway.

Liz: You are wrong. We can make Hong Kong a better place to live.

Lily: Are you sure?

Liz: Yes! Come with me.

Lily followed Liz to a café. She gave Liz an astonished (驚訝的) look when she saw so many beautiful tropical plants in this café.


Lily: Oh! Am I dreaming?

Liz: Welcome to The Village. Would you like to join me for a tour?

Lily : Sure! I have never seen so many plants in such a small area before! Amazing!
Liz: Like many other big cities, lack of space is a reality in Hong Kong. We should think of ways to maximize the use of any available space.

Lily: Like how?

Liz: Can you notice anything special about the plants here?

Lily: Some plants grow on the wall.

Liz: You are very smart. This is what we called “vertical gardening” (直立式花園). Plants are not restricted to growing on the ground or in pots, they can also grow on the wall.

Lily: Oh! The green walls! Are there any other ben
efits (好處)?

Liz: Of course. Plants can lower temperature of the walls and thus cool down the surrounding space.

Lily: I want to create an attractive garden in my small apartment too. They have a large variety of plants here.

Liz: You are right. Since no soil is used, there are no mosquitos (蚊子) and other insects.



Despite the fact that land is limited in Hong Kong, we can still improve our living place by adding plants to help keep our home and office atmosphere healthier. Vertical gardening, gardening with upright (向上) structures, is ideal for the urban city areas. Walls are often used to create practical (實用) gardening spaces. It is space saving and environmentally friendly.

Lily has decided to make small moves to keep her home green and clean. She stops using plastic bags and starts building a framework for a small vertical garden at home. She believes that these small things can add up to a better future.

Questions:
1) Why plastic products are harmful to the environment?
2) What is vertical gardening?
3) What are the benefits of having a vertical garden?
4) What will you do to help protect our environment?

Answers:
1) Plastic is one of the major toxic pollutants and disposal of plastic products on land makes harm to soil.
2) Plants are not restricted to growing on the ground or in pots, they can also grow on the wall.
3) You can build a vertical garden in a small area. Since no soil is used, there are no mosquitos and other insects.

By Lily Poon
Special thanks to The Village as our venue provider

If you have any suggestion, please email us! wwpenglishcolumn@gmail.com

2010年11月4日 星期四

PURCARI 普加利葡萄酒的故事

老友記從摩爾多瓦(Moldova)的著名酒莊普加利(Purcari)入口葡萄酒, 為香港酒迷帶來新驚喜! 想更了解摩爾多瓦葡萄酒? 請看"普加利葡萄酒的故事"!

歡迎您於11月4 - 6 日前來假香港會議及展覽中心舉行的香港國際美酒展(三號展覽館 booth no. 3G27)品嚐如此特別的佳釀!


字幕/ 聲音演出: Lily Poon
技術支援: C.P. Chan
Copyrighted by: Ghvino


展覽會上酒商對普加利酒莊的葡萄酒十分感興趣!


小妮在品嚐百聞不如一見的「黑色普加利」!


普加利葡萄酒於日本著名漫畫『神之水滴』中亦有提及!


最後我試了甜酒!


我們很期待您的到訪!

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