1 . I started cooking when I was thirteen. Both of my parents worked, so I was usually ________ after school. One day, my parents forgot to ________ dinner before they went to work. As we were short of money, eating out was beyond ________ . So I decided to be the ________ of the day.

A few moments later, I ________   to cook fried rice, the best option out of ________ resources, including my cooking knowledge. After ________ a pan on the stove and turning on the heat, it soon began to sizzle (咝咝作响). I was so hungry that I ________ and threw everything into the pan all together. In went rice, pieces of meat and vegetables. Little did I know that the   ________ of ingredients was crucial in cooking. I ________ waited for the meat to be thoroughly cooked, but other ingredients were   ________ . At first, I mistook it as steam from cooking, but I soon ________ something went horribly wrong when smoke came out to ________ the kitchen.

Later that day, my mother told me, “You cannot rush yourself when cooking.” Rather, I should take steps, turning to the basics, such as learning about the ingredients and ________ the recipe.

I’ve learned that the first ________ seems hard but we should just start and let the journey teach us.

5 . I’m now the chef and owner of a restaurant. Nothing in my early years led me to ______ my life would connect to food and cooking deeply. My family did eat together often; we had a ______ that my grandmother cooked the weekly big meal on weekends, but food was hardly the ______ of my family’s story. After I entered college, I was still ______ about what I wanted to do. Maybe I was supposed to ______ the crowd, getting a decent job, like in medicine or something similar.

When accepting the job assisting cooks after finishing college, I just ______ to pay my rent. That didn’t ______ any big life plans. However, as I worked longer, the food world showed me amazing ______ .

Too little salt, and a dish is ______ to be “tasteless‌”. A bit lemon juice helps prevent cut apples and peaches from turning brown and ______ their appealing colors. The lesson that small things matter reminds me to never ______ tiny stuff in all parts of life. Also, working with food teaches me to really taste, smell and touch. I learn to observe my ______, watching ways birds land, the growth of trees along roads... and ______ wonders in everyday life. ______ , I head down my own path, which is ______ from going to medical school as my parents did, but gives my life purpose and direction.

6 . My husband and I intended to have a quiet, low-key New Year’s Eve this year. We wanted to spend it with our kids and other immediate family and make it a special ________ for them, instead of ________ a babysitter and going out on our own.

The logical way to do this was through ________. As we all know, food had a magical way of making a night ________, and our New Year’s Eve certainly ________ that way, thanks to doughnuts (甜甜圈).

I decided to make doughnuts because my cousins had ________ a batch (一批) on Halloween and I found it very ________. I used a recipe from the 1976 Mennonite cookbook More With Less and it ________ a curious ingredient — two cups of mashed potatoes that ________ made the texture lighter. The doughnuts were rolled out and cut from a sheet of dough (生面团), then left to ________ until ready to fry in hot oil. Then they took several seconds to ________, which meant that my enormous batch of 100 doughnuts was ________ cooking in a fairly short time. We glazed (浇上浆液) the tops and then ________ them for the rest of the evening. The leftovers disappeared at breakfast.

This will become an annual ________, I have no doubt. Whether we host a bigger party or keep it small, there will always be ________ doughnuts, because when you have hot homemade doughnuts, you can’t help but have the best time.

7 . Most people get rid of their leftover foods，but in Nigerian-born visual artist Haneefah Adam’s kitchen，they’re put to good use.

Adam，28，is famous for _______ food in creative ways，using it to make portraits and other works of art. She has _______ been artistic. Her mother said she had a _______ for art. Now，she’s building a career out of changing food into art. “I do _______ portraits and also often sew and paint，but what _______ me the most is food art，”she says. Adam is inspired by _______ things，including life experiences and culture. She _______ everything around her as something that can be made into art.

In 2016，she_______ the TechMeetsArtNG exhibition，which was _______ and funded by Samsung Nigeria and Rele Gallery. ________ the competition，my art was mostly random，and I was just recording food art on social media. But after winning，I started to think about ________making a living from food art，”she says.

Winning the competition kick-started Adam’s ________ and her full-time job is now________art for food brands such as Maggi and Dangote Salt. “I want to ________ in more exhibitions. I currently live in Kwara，northern Nigeria；it is difficult to ________in the country’s art scene from here，”she says.

9 . Food is everything to me. I believe in its ________ that brings people together, I’ve had a great ________ in cooking since I was a young boy. My family would sit around the dinner table, telling stories and ________ dishes with all the flavors (味道) of a ________ Puerto Rican meal. The idea of being together as a ________ around a table of traditional recipes ________ led me to where I am today as the chief chef and vice president of Ruth’s Chris Steak House.

I worked in various cooking positions before ________ my place within the company, though I ________ as a dishwasher, I had a dream to succeed in the exciting food industry. Later, as a(an) ________ hand in the team, I worked hard, and our team was given the name FILO (first in, last out) ________ we came in early and stayed late each day.

I came to ________ the true meaning of harmony when I worked with our founder, Ruth Fertel,who had a magic ________ for everything, not only for her famous ________ but also for relationships, ________ everyone like family. Being at Ruth’s Chris gave me a sense of ________ early on in my career. I wanted to be sure that the feeling ________ through in my role at Ruth’s Chris. And I do ________ no effort to take care of both my teammates and each unique guest who ________ me to continue cooking and bring ________ to their faces. I love serving cuisine that leaves a(an) ________ impression with them, just like my family meals did for me.