英语博客：Strawberries and cream.

　　Easter Sunday, a day of family, celebration, and fun. Today, after church, my family and I got together with my in-laws in the East Wenatchee Country Club for lunch. The club is actually for golf, but even if you don't golf, you can go to the restaurant which is really very good. For special occasions, their kitchen puts on quite a spread. Today they had lamb, ham, and chicken with mushrooms. Often they will serve prime rib¹ beef which just melts in your mouth. And for those of you who are vegetarians², they also have a variety of egg and bean dishes with lots of fruits and vegetables. We dressed up a little more than usual for this lunch; it's a tradition, I suppose. While we ate, the children had an Easter egg hunt on the golf course. It was so cute to see little girls running around in their pretty dresses carrying baskets, and the boys dressed up like little men, all searching for the plastic eggs that had been hidden by the club staff. As we ate, we chatted away, and finished up with dessert. As usual, there was a choice of about six different desserts: cheese cakes, brownies, tiramisu, and some other rich chocolatey thing that I have no name for. It was a time for indulgence! Everything looked so good! I scanned³ the table to see what everybody else was eating, so I could make my choice. I noticed that each of my children had chosen about three things. "Well," I thought to myself, "it's Easter; I'll let them this time." As I chose my desserts, I made a quick trip to the table where they had fruit, cheeses, and pastries⁴ laid out. I piled a few of the freshest looking berries on my plate and headed back to our table. When I got there, my children noticed the strawberries on my plate and said, "Hey, good idea, Mum," so they went off and got some. What can I say? There was too much to choose from, and everybody was being greedy. Before I knew it, my kids were tucking⁶ into plates of strawberries and cream, as if their lives depended on them. It really is the perfect combination of tastes and textures⁷ for an Easter dessert.
Grammar notes.
Common expressions: as if their (his, her etc) lives depended on it (them), to put on a spread, to melt in your mouth, to tuck⁵ into.
1. The girl clung⁸ hold of her balloon as if her life depended on it.   OR
They ate their hamburgers so fast, as if their lives depended on them.
2. My grandmother is such a good cook. She always puts on quite a spread at Christmas.
3. How did you make these cookies? They melt in your mouth!
4. The hungry travellers tucked⁹ into the stew¹⁰ because they hadn't eaten in such a long time.

1 rib   

n.肋骨，肋状物

参考例句：

• He broke a rib when he fell off his horse.他从马上摔下来折断了一根肋骨。
• He has broken a rib and the doctor has strapped it up.他断了一根肋骨，医生已包扎好了。

2 vegetarians   

n.吃素的人( vegetarian的名词复数 )；素食者；素食主义者；食草动物

参考例句：

• Vegetarians are no longer dismissed as cranks. 素食者不再被视为有怪癖的人。
• Vegetarians believe that eating meat is bad karma. 素食者认为吃肉食是造恶业。

3 scanned   

经（擦伤仪）仔细检查的

参考例句：

• He scanned the horizon for any sign of land. 他仔细眺望地平线，找寻陆地的踪影。
• She scanned his face to see if he was telling the truth. 她审视着他的脸，看他讲的是否是真话。

4 pastries   

n.面粉制的糕点

参考例句：

• He gave a dry laugh, then sat down and started on the pastries. 杜新箨说着干笑一声，坐下去就吃点心。 来自子夜部分
• Mike: So many! I like Xijiang raisins, beef jerky, and local pastries. 麦克：太多了。我最喜欢吃新疆葡萄干、牛肉干和风味点心。

5 tuck   

n.缝摺，船尾突出部下方，食品，鼓声；vt.打摺，卷起，挤进，畅饮；vi.缝褶裥，缩拢，畅饮

参考例句：

• It was nip and tuck as to which boat would reach port first.两条船中哪一条先进港都很难说。
• Tuck your shirt into your trousers.把你的衬衫下摆掖进裤腰里。

6 tucking   

手压实（砂型）

参考例句：

• He crouched, tucking his knees under his chin. 他蜷曲着，把两个膝盖缩拢在颚下。
• I can assure you that we have every chance of tucking his ass into jail. 我敢向你担保，我们完全有把握将这头蠢驴塞进监狱。

7 textures   

n.手感( texture的名词复数 )；质感；口感；（音乐或文学的）谐和统一感

参考例句：

• I'm crazy about fabrics textures and colors and designs. 我喜欢各式各样的纺织物--对它的质地，色彩到花纹图案--简直是入了迷。 来自辞典例句
• Let me clear up the point about the textures. 让我明确了一点有关的纹理。 来自互联网

8 Clung   

v.附着于( cling的过去式和过去分词 )；抓紧或抱住；坚持；依恋，依附于

参考例句：

• The Prime Minister clung to his job like a limpet, despite calls for him to resign. 首相不顾有人要求他辞职，死赖在他的职位上不下台。
• She clung to the hope that her son was not dead. 她抱定儿子并没有死的希望不放。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 tucked   

塞进( tuck的过去式和过去分词 )； 翻折； 盖住； 卷起

参考例句：

• She tucked up her skirt and waded into the river. 她撩起裙子蹚水走进河里。
• She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ears. 她把一缕散发夹到了耳后。

10 stew   

n.炖汤，焖，烦恼；v.炖汤，焖，忧虑

参考例句：

• The stew must be boiled up before serving.炖肉必须煮熟才能上桌。
• There's no need to get in a stew.没有必要烦恼。