Extracting the Truth
I grabbed a spatula from the drawer and began stirring my cake mixture. The church potluck is tomorrow, and I offered to make a cake. I glanced at the ingredients again.
“Mom, we’re out of extract,” I said.
“I’m sorry, Trey, I can’t go to the store. I have some extra work I need to do,” my mom said.
I sighed. “I guess I can go.”
I went outside, hopped onto my bike and pedaled off. I reached the market in under 10 minutes. I walked down the baking aisle and looked at the different ingredients.
Did I need vanilla extract or almond extract? I thought to myself. I made a guess, grabbed the almond extract and made my way back home.
Once I got home, my mom had already put away my recipe. So I added two tablespoons of almond extract to my cake batter. I poured the batter into a pan and put it in the oven. After watching TV for a while, I heard the timer go off. I slipped on the oven mitts and pulled out the cake. I let it sit so it would cool while I finished making the icing.
I couldn’t wait for everyone to try my cake! I decorated it with blue icing, and it looked great. That night, I could hardly sleep. I was so excited. Hopefully, the cake tasted as good as it looked.
The morning arrived, and I woke with a start as Cooper lifted my mattress.
“Cooper!” I yelled.
Cooper looked at me. “I’ve been trying to wake you for 10 minutes.”
Reluctantly, I got up and got dressed. After I brushed my teeth, we were on our way to church. The whole service passed in a blur. Then it was time for lunch, and after that, my cake!
I got in line for the food and heaped it onto my plate. For dessert, I grabbed a knife and cut the cake into pieces. I plopped them on people’s plates and watched everyone’s reaction. I was surprised to see confusion on their faces. I glanced at my mom as she took a bite.
“Trey, did you put vanilla or almond extract in here?” she asked.
I looked across the room, then at my mom. “Almond . . . oops.” Almond extract is way stronger than vanilla extract, I thought.
I stood up and went to the front of the church. “Uh, sorry everyone. I seemed to have used the wrong extract in the cake.”
Even though it was embarrassing, I learned a good lesson. Always double-check your ingredients.
—Annabeth R., 14, Texas
