VOA慢速英语2010-THIS IS AMERICA - Finding Sweetness in a

FAITH LAPIDUS:

Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. I'm Faith Lapidus.

STEVE EMBER:

And I'm Steve Ember. To some people, they are nothing more than a harmless treat or a guilty pleasure to enjoy from time to time. To others, they are enemies of the public health in a time of what the World Health Organization calls a "global obesity¹ epidemic²." But one thing is sure: foods like doughnuts and cupcakes are a big business. This week on our program, we tell you about a few kinds of foods that some Americans find hard to resist.

(MUSIC: "Sugar, Sugar" / The Archies)

FAITH LAPIDUS:

Grocery stores in the United States sold almost half a billion dollars worth of freshly made doughnuts last year. And that is not all.

Customers line up at the Curbside Cupcakes truck in Washington

The Perishables⁴ Group is a consulting company in the fresh food industry. It says those doughnuts represented just sixty percent or so of all the doughnuts sold in supermarkets. And the sales total does not include all the doughnuts sold in specialty⁵ stores.

STEVE EMBER:

A doughnut is a round piece of fried dough³ with a hole in the middle or filled with cream or jelly⁶. The traditional spelling is d-o-u-g-h-n-u-t but people often just spell it d-o-n-u-t.

A lot of places that sell coffee also sell doughnuts. But there are stores like Dunkin' Donuts and Krispy Kreme that make many different kinds of donuts. Some people call these "designer doughnuts."

That name could also describe a dessert served at Buddakan, a modern-Asian restaurant in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. One of its most popular desserts is called Dip Sum Doughnuts. Buddakan pastry⁷ chef Kate Honeyman explains.

KATE HONEYMAN: "They are small, round doughnuts, they're served in a Chinese take-out box and they're coated in a cinnamon and five-spice sugar. And we serve them with a trio of dipping sauces --chocolate, ginger⁸ cream cheese and a blackberry jam."

BROOK⁹ LEVIN: "They arrived in a cardboard¹⁰ take-out box similar to when you get Chinese food to bring home."

FAITH LAPIDUS:

This is Brook Levin, a retired¹¹ teacher who ordered the dessert at Buddakan in Philadelphia.

BROOK LEVIN: "And the box was open and there were probably about five or six of these little round, yummy-smelling warm doughnuts in there. And next to them on the plate was, it was a sectioned plate, and there were three different dipping sauces that you could use to make them even better. Yummy, just delicious."

(MUSIC: "If I Knew You Were Comin', I'd've Baked a Cake")

STEVE EMBER:

From doughnuts we move on to cupcakes. There are chocolate, vanilla¹² and other kinds. Cupcakes are generally topped with frosting and served still inside the paper baking cup in which they were made.

Cupcakes have been around for a long time. Children love them. But in recent years a lot of adults have found reason to love them, too.

Amanda Bloss at the Cupcakes Actually bakery in Fairfax, Virginia

AMANDA BLOSS: "Cupcakes are cool because they're having your own personal cake instead of having to share with a lot of people. You get one especially for you."

FAITH LAPIDUS:

Amanda Bloss is a college student from Fairfax, Virginia, near Washington. She is a fan of cupcakes. In fact, she has even been to the Magnolia Bakery in New York City which helped spread the current craze.

AMANDA BLOSS: "Magnolia is wonderful. The first time I went I got a red velvet¹³ and a dark chocolate with mocha frosting and split¹⁴ it with my best friend. And it was the most amazing cupcake I've ever had in my life! [Laughs]"

(SOUND: "Lazy Sunday" / NBC's "Saturday Night Live")

That was from "Saturday Night Live" -- just one of the TV shows and movies that have featured the Magnolia Bakery in New York. But we met Amanda at a bakery in Fairfax called Cupcakes Actually. The Washington Post recently rated the cupcakes from there as some of the best in the capital area.

Jennifer Neiman (NY-man) and her sister Susan Woodhouse opened the bakery about a year ago, right in the middle of the Great Recession¹⁵.

JENNIFER NEIMAN: "I mean I knew cupcakes were hot, but I didn't expect quite the sales for that first year. About a little over five hundred thousand in sales the first…

SUSAN WOODHOUSE: "nine months."

STEVE EMBER:

So why do they think cupcakes are so popular?

JENNIFER NEIMAN: "People can eat a cupcake and not feel like they're eating a whole piece of cake. It's just you know a guilty little pleasure, I think, for most, and it…

SUSAN WOODHOUSE:" you can offer more flavors instead of one cake you know you can offer six different kind of cupcakes."

Cupcake stores have opened in cities around the country. Some are even on wheels.

Curbside Cupcakes operates out of a truck that travels around Washington. Two friends, Kristi Cunningham and Sam Whitfield, started the company in November of two thousand nine. She was a business consultant¹⁶ and he was working as a lawyer.

Kristi says Sam got the idea because he did not want to go to a store to get a cupcake. He wanted the store to come to him. So now, people can go to the Curbside Cupcakes Web site and find out where the truck will be at each hour of the day. The information is also available on Facebook and Twitter.

FAITH LAPIDUS:

We caught up with the truck about a block from the VOA studios. One of the many customers in line was Sarah Sullivan from Arlington, Virginia.

SARAH SULLIVAN: "They're accessible, I mean they go all around D.C. and really good quality cupcakes. I consider myself a connoisseur¹⁷ of good cupcakes and I think they make a good solid cupcake. During tough times -- I mean we are in a recession right now -- this is like affordable¹⁸ luxury. You know, it's like three dollars for something that's, I don't know, in my mind pretty luxurious¹⁹."

Another customer in line at the Curbside Cupcakes truck was this woman, Pat Roberts from Leesburg, Virginia.

PAT ROBERTS: "Well, they're easy to eat, they're like bite-size portions which is better than cake or ice cream, so you don't feel like you get as many calories if you eat just one. You have the option of just eating one."

STEVE EMBER:

Kristi Cunningham says she and Sam Whitfield hope to expand Curbside Cupcakes within Washington and to surrounding areas. Right now they have just the one truck and their business permit is good only in the city. So when Kristi uses the truck to see her mother outside Washington, people are disappointed that she cannot stop to sell them cupcakes.

One more thing. Kristi and Sam were friends when they became business partners. Now, since opening Curbside Cupcakes, they have decided²⁰ to get married.

But we'll let Jennifer Neiman, co-owner of Cupcakes Actually in Fairfax, Virginia, have the last word about the appeal of cupcakes.

JENNIFER NEIMAN: "Oh my goodness, you should see how people look when they walk in and see cupcakes. It's like Santa Claus was sitting behind that counter. They just -- I don't care if it's a ninety year old man or a two year old child or a thirty year old, you know, woman or man. Everybody just goes goo-goo eyed over cupcakes."

(MUSIC: "Sweets for My Sweet" / The Drifters)

FAITH LAPIDUS:

One sweet treat that is fairly new to the United States is the macaron. That's m-a-c-a-r-o-n. People who have never heard of a macaron usually confuse it with the much better known treat spelled with two Os, the macaroon.

Rande Janus sells locally made macarons at his store, the Wine Cabinet, in Reston, Virginia. He explains the difference between a macaron and a macaroon.

Rande Januss with a box of macarons at his Wine Cabinet store in Reston, Virginia

RANDE JANUS: "People are used to bakery style macaroons which is coconut²¹ based. This is a very very different product. This is in the French European tradition, is its very very small just about the size of a half dollar or so. And once people taste them, they come back for more. It's as simple as that."

STEVE EMBER:

The modern macaron is a sandwich cookie basically made of sugar, almonds and egg whites around a creamy filling. The outside layers are a bit crunchy, then the soft part takes over and the whole thing seems to just melt in your mouth.

Macarons come in many different flavors. They include chocolate, coffee, salted caramel, raspberry, orange, eggnog, lemon, cinnamon, pistachio, even peanut butter and jelly.

FAITH LAPIDUS:

Rande Janus says people come into his wine store looking for macarons after they taste them at a friend's house or a party or a wedding. So what does he think of their future with Americans?

RANDS JANUS: "I think it's going to be about the level that wine is. And basically ten percent of us buy ninety percent of the wine. So I don't see this as being on every table. But if people enjoy fine dining, if people enjoy entertaining, they're always looking for ways to enjoy their friends and family and impress them and have wonderful food, but not everyone has the time these days to prepare things themselves. So this type of product is just, they're a treat, they're something very, very special to be savored²²."

(MUSIC)

FAITH LAPIDUS:

This program was written by Nancy Steinbach and produced by Caty Weaver²³. You can find transcripts²⁴, MP3 and archives of our programs, and sign up for podcasts, at voaspecialenglish.com. You can also post comments on any of our stories. And you can follow us on Twitter at VOA Learning English. I'm Faith Lapidus.

STEVE EMBER:

And I'm Steve Ember. We hope you join us again next week for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. Wow, I am really hungry after all this talk about doughnuts, cupcakes, macaroons and macarons. Do you think that cupcake truck is still in the area, Faith?

FAITH LAPIDUS:

Oh, I'm right behind you ...
 

1 obesity   

n.肥胖，肥大

参考例句：

• One effect of overeating may be obesity.吃得过多能导致肥胖。
• Sugar and fat can more easily lead to obesity than some other foods.糖和脂肪比其他食物更容易导致肥胖。

2 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

3 dough   

n.生面团；钱，现款

参考例句：

• She formed the dough into squares.她把生面团捏成四方块。
• The baker is kneading dough.那位面包师在揉面。

4 perishables   

n.容易腐坏的东西（尤指食品）( perishable的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Perishables are stacked on deck under cover, awaiting rigid inspection before they are struck below. 易腐物品已经覆盖起来堆放在甲板上，等经过严格的检查后再搬下船舱。 来自辞典例句
• Sorry, these perishables are not allowed to bring in. 对不起，这些易腐烂的东西是不允许入境的。 来自互联网

5 specialty   

n.(speciality)特性，特质；专业，专长

参考例句：

• Shell carvings are a specialty of the town.贝雕是该城的特产。
• His specialty is English literature.他的专业是英国文学。

6 jelly   

n.冻，果子冻，胶状物

参考例句：

• We had toast and jelly at breakfast.我们早餐吃的是烤面包和果冻。
• The medicine was a clear jelly.这种药是透明的胶状物。

7 pastry   

n.油酥面团，酥皮糕点

参考例句：

• The cook pricked a few holes in the pastry.厨师在馅饼上戳了几个洞。
• The pastry crust was always underdone.馅饼的壳皮常常烤得不透。

8 ginger   

n.姜，精力，淡赤黄色；adj.淡赤黄色的；vt.使活泼，使有生气

参考例句：

• There is no ginger in the young man.这个年轻人没有精神。
• Ginger shall be hot in the mouth.生姜吃到嘴里总是辣的。

9 brook   

n.小河，溪；v.忍受，容让

参考例句：

• In our room we could hear the murmur of a distant brook.在我们房间能听到远处小溪汩汩的流水声。
• The brook trickled through the valley.小溪涓涓流过峡谷。

10 cardboard   

n.硬纸板，卡纸板

参考例句：

• She brought the shopping home in a cardboard box.她将买的东西放在纸箱里带回家。
• There is a sheet of stiff cardboard in the drawer.在那个抽屉里有块硬纸板。

11 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

12 vanilla   

n.香子兰，香草

参考例句：

• He used to love milk flavoured with vanilla.他过去常爱喝带香草味的牛奶。
• I added a dollop of vanilla ice-cream to the pie.我在馅饼里加了一块香草冰激凌。

13 velvet   

n.丝绒，天鹅绒；adj.丝绒制的，柔软的

参考例句：

• This material feels like velvet.这料子摸起来像丝绒。
• The new settlers wore the finest silk and velvet clothing.新来的移民穿着最华丽的丝绸和天鹅绒衣服。

14 split   

n.劈开，裂片，裂口；adj.分散的；v.分离，分开，劈开

参考例句：

• Who told you that Mary and I had split up?谁告诉你玛丽和我已经离婚了？
• The teacher split the class up into six groups.老师把班级分成6个小组。

15 recession   

n.（工商业的）衷退（期），萧条（期）

参考例句：

• Manufacturing fell sharply under the impact of the recession.受到经济萧条的影响，制造业急剧衰退。
• A rise in interest rates plunged Britain deeper into recession.利率的提高导致英国经济更加萧条。

16 consultant   

n.顾问；会诊医师，专科医生

参考例句：

• He is a consultant on law affairs to the mayor.他是市长的一个法律顾问。
• Originally,Gar had agreed to come up as a consultant.原来，加尔只答应来充当我们的顾问。

17 connoisseur   

n.鉴赏家，行家，内行

参考例句：

• Only the real connoisseur could tell the difference between these two wines.只有真正的内行才能指出这两种酒的区别。
• We are looking for a connoisseur of French champagne.我们想找一位法国香槟酒品酒专家。

18 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

19 luxurious   

adj.精美而昂贵的；豪华的

参考例句：

• This is a luxurious car complete with air conditioning and telephone.这是一辆附有空调设备和电话的豪华轿车。
• The rich man lives in luxurious surroundings.这位富人生活在奢侈的环境中。

20 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

21 coconut   

n.椰子

参考例句：

• The husk of this coconut is particularly strong.椰子的外壳很明显非常坚固。
• The falling coconut gave him a terrific bang on the head.那只掉下的椰子砰地击中他的脑袋。

22 savored   

v.意味，带有…的性质( savor的过去式和过去分词 )；给…加调味品；使有风味；品尝

参考例句：

• We savored the barbed hits in his reply. 我们很欣赏他在回答中使用的带刺的俏皮话。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• We savored, (the pleasures of) mountain life to the full. 我们充分体会了山居生活的乐趣。 来自辞典例句

23 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。

24 transcripts   

n.抄本（ transcript的名词复数 ）；转写本；文字本；副本

参考例句：

• Like mRNA, both tRNA and rRNA are transcripts of chromosomal DNA. tRNA及rRNA同mRNA一样，都是染色体DNA的转录产物。 来自辞典例句
• You can't take the transfer students'exam without your transcripts. 没有成绩证明书，你就不能参加转学考试。 来自辞典例句