Spanish StoriesLa tarta de cumpleaños
The Birthday Cake
Lucía has two hours to bake her mother's birthday cake before she gets home, but she runs out of chocolate along the way. A warm A1 story about following a recipe and asking for help.
Topics
- family
- cooking
- birthdays
- daily life
Tap or hover any underlined word for its English meaning.
Listen to the story
Learner-paced · SpanishWhat you'll encounter
- Grammar
- Present tense verbs, Reflexive verbs (reírse), Direct object pronouns (la, lo), Simple past tense (compré, ha tenido), Time expressions (a las cuatro, a las seis de la tarde)
- Vocabulary
- Baking and kitchen items (harina, receta, horno, molde), Family members (madre, hermano, hijos), Clock and time expressions
- Language skills
- Following a recipe, Asking someone for help, Expressing surprise and gratitude
Hoy es el cumpleaños de la madre de Lucía.
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Lucía quiere hacer una para ella. Su madre está trabajando y vuelve a casa a las seis de la tarde.
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Lucía mira el reloj.
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Son las cuatro.
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«Tengo dos horas», piensa.
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En la cocina, pone sobre la mesa , huevos, azúcar, leche y chocolate.
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Primero, los huevos con el azúcar.
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Después la leche y la harina.
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Lucía mira la .
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«Ahora necesito chocolate.»
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Abre el .
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No hay chocolate.
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Lucía mira otra vez.
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Nada.
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«¡!»
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Piensa un momento. Quizás hay chocolate en el de la cocina.
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Abre el cajón.
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Hay cucharas, cuchillos, una y muchas cosas pequeñas.
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Pero no hay chocolate.
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Lucía coge su teléfono y llama a su hermano.
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«Hola, Carlos. ¿Estás en casa?»
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«Sí. ¿Por qué?»
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«Necesito chocolate para la tarta.»
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Carlos .
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«Hay chocolate en mi habitación. Compré una ayer.»
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«¿Puedes traerla, por favor?»
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«Sí, claro.»
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Diez minutos después, Carlos entra en la cocina con una tableta de chocolate.
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«.»
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«¡Gracias! .»
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Lucía corta el chocolate en pequeños trozos y lo añade a la mezcla.
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Después pone la mezcla en un .
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«¿Cuánto tiempo tiene que estar en el ?», pregunta Carlos.
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Lucía mira la receta.
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«Treinta minutos.»
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Pone la tarta en el horno y espera.
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Durante los siguientes treinta minutos, Lucía limpia la cocina y Carlos .
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A las cinco y media, la tarta está lista.
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Lucía del horno.
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.
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Los dos miran la tarta.
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«Es bonita», dice Carlos.
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«Sí, pero .»
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Lucía mira la mesa.
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Hay en un plato.
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«¡Ya sé! Podemos poner fresas .»
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Lavan las fresas y las ponen sobre la tarta.
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A las seis, su madre llega a casa.
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Cuando entra en la cocina, ve la tarta.
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«¿Es para mí?»
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Lucía sonríe.
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«Sí. ¡Feliz cumpleaños!»
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Su madre a sus hijos.
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«Muchas gracias. Es una sorpresa preciosa.»
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Carlos mira a Lucía.
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«Y no tenemos chocolate.»
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Lucía se ríe.
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«Pero tenemos una tarta.»
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Todos se sientan a la mesa.
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La tarta está deliciosa.
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Show English translation
Today is Lucía's mother's birthday.
Lucía wants to make a cake for her. Her mother is working and comes home at six in the evening.
Lucía looks at the clock.
It's four o'clock.
"I have two hours," she thinks.
In the kitchen, she puts flour, eggs, sugar, milk, and chocolate on the table.
First, she mixes the eggs with the sugar.
Then she adds the milk and flour.
Lucía looks at the recipe.
"Now I need chocolate."
She opens the cupboard.
There is no chocolate.
Lucía looks again.
Nothing.
"It can't be!"
She thinks for a moment. Maybe there is chocolate in the kitchen drawer.
She opens the drawer.
There are spoons, knives, a bag of tea, and many small things.
But there is no chocolate.
Lucía picks up her phone and calls her brother.
"Hi, Carlos. Are you at home?"
"Yes. Why?"
"I need chocolate for the cake."
Carlos laughs.
"There is chocolate in my room. I bought a bar yesterday."
"Can you bring it, please?"
"Yes, of course."
Ten minutes later, Carlos enters the kitchen with a chocolate bar.
"Here you go."
"Thank you! You saved me."
Lucía cuts the chocolate into small pieces and adds it to the mixture.
Then she puts the mixture into a baking pan.
"How long does it need to be in the oven?" Carlos asks.
Lucía looks at the recipe.
"Thirty minutes."
She puts the cake in the oven and waits.
During the next thirty minutes, Lucía cleans the kitchen and Carlos sets the table.
At five thirty, the cake is ready.
Lucía takes it out of the oven.
It smells very good.
The two of them look at the cake.
"It's pretty," Carlos says.
"Yes, but something is missing."
Lucía looks at the table.
There are strawberries on a plate.
"I know! We can put strawberries on top."
They wash the strawberries and put them on the cake.
At six, her mother comes home.
When she enters the kitchen, she sees the cake.
"Is it for me?"
Lucía smiles.
"Yes. Happy birthday!"
Her mother hugs her children.
"Thank you very much. It's a beautiful surprise."
Carlos looks at Lucía.
"And we almost didn't have any chocolate."
Lucía laughs.
"But we have a cake."
Everyone sits at the table.
The cake is delicious.
Vocabulary in this story
- tarta
- cake
- harina
- flour
- mezcla
- mixes
- añade
- adds
- receta
- recipe
- armario
- cupboard
- No puede ser
- it can't be
- cajón
- drawer
- bolsa de té
- tea bag
- se ríe
- laughs
- tableta
- bar (of chocolate)
- Aquí tienes
- here you go
- Me has salvado
- you saved me
- molde
- baking pan
- horno
- oven
- prepara la mesa
- sets the table
- la saca
- takes it out
- Huele muy bien
- it smells very good
- falta algo
- something is missing
- fresas
- strawberries
- encima
- on top
- abraza
- hugs
- casi
- almost
Comprensión(check what you understood)
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