The chef pine cone

So excited did our good pine cone get, that he locked himself in his kitchen and read recipes all day long so as to best prepare and choose the most delicious dish to cook. Just in case he failed to impress them with the main dish, he even came up with a backup plan to serve them an even more delicious dessert that would definitely get them to give him the big prize. When the big day came, he wore his apron, then went straight to his kitchen and gave his best self to prepare his dishes with the utmost attention.

The fruit and vegetables of the grocery store patiently sat on their seats and waited. When at some point the great chef left his kitchen to serve them, he presented them with many big plates filled with his first masterpiece: stuffed turkey roll. The fruit and vegetables enjoyed it to the last bite, yet there was no-one to offer  him the prize. Disappointed, he returned to his kitchen and kept cooking.

“Maybe this will make you give me the prize!”, the pine cone exclaimed a couple of minutes later, carrying the second dish: sea bream with garlic and rosemary. This time the fruit and vegetables got even more excited and couldn’t help but lick their forks. And so, the story goes for a third and a fourth time. Until in the end, the time for dessert came, and the prize was nowhere to be seen.

The pine cone locked himself in the kitchen for a final time, aiming to cook the most delicious dessert one could imagine: a chocolate caramel cake. Much to his bad luck, however, no sooner had he taken the cookware from the shelf than the grocery store sunk into darkness. “Power cut!”, the other fruit and vegetables exclaimed as  they took out candles and matches to light them. After a while, however, and seeing that the light of candles created a very nice atmosphere for dinners, they went back to their tables and ate without seeming to care.

“I’m really sorry, but it seems I have no choice but to join you until the problem is resolved”, the pine cone told them a little later, eventually coming to terms with the fact that he wouldn’t cook dessert that day. He, then, took out a chair and joined the other fruit and vegetables in their dinner. So much did he even enjoy their company, that he forgot about making dessert. They discussed and ate, with only candle light to keep them company, and they would have truly stood there for hours, had the electric light not returned to the building a little later.

“Time for me to go back to the kitchen and cook dessert for you”, the pine cone told them. “No need to, it’s your company that we wanted anyway”, the other fruit and vegetables admitted, and rewarded his labor with the big prize: a chef’s toque made of gold. They, then, explained to him that just like all great chefs, he should pay more attention to those who enjoy his creations instead of lock himself in the kitchen unseen. Our good pine cone was so moved by the prize that he cried with joy as he wore the toque.

From that day on, they became good friends, and made sure to always keep good company to each....