How it works...

The most important configuration file in a Gradle project is the build.gradle. First, we have to add apply plugin: 'java' to tell Gradle that Java is the core language in building the scripts, testing the codes, executing compiled objects, creating Javadoc, and deploying JAR or WAR files. Since all project management and tooling depends on STS Eclipse, there is a need to add apply plugin: 'eclipse' in order to tell Gradle that all descriptors are Eclipse-specific and can be integrated and executed with Eclipse core and extension plugins. A by-product of its project installation and execution are the Eclipse folders such as .project, and .classpath. And since this is a web development project, we need to apply plugin: 'war' to indicate that the deployment is at WAR mode. Later on we will be adding some plugins needed in the development of our recipes.

In the properties section, the configuration must tell Gradle the version of the JDK through the sourceCompatibility property. Another property is the version of the WAR or project deployment, which is at first set to 1.0. Since the mode of deployment is the web, Java must know the name and the version of the WAR file to be generated.

On the repositories section, the configuration must define where to find the dependencies, which are at JCenter and MavenCentral.