The Science of Food

Did you know cooking involves science? If you think about it, it really does. We apply heat and cold to make things solidify or liquefy. We add different ingredients to create chemical reactions to make something different. What we make, if not done right, can generate bacteria or mold. Yeast is a live organism that we manipulate and kill for a variety of foods. All of that is just scratching the surface of food science, but we scratched it hard during our first day of Biotech Day Camp.
This is the third year for Biotech Day camp and it was bigger and better than ever. In the past three counties participated, but this year we brought our total number of campers up to 40 with the addition of a new county. Bladen, Cumberland, Hoke and Robeson County 4-H programs met in Robeson County on the first day and took over the Robeson County Cooperative Extension office. The group worked with teen volunteers to complete icebreakers while the adults (volunteers and staff) set up to teach some pretty incredible stuff. The youth were broken into four groups and rotated so they got a chance to do each of the activities during the day.
Sandra Cain, the Family and Consumer Science Agent in Bladen County and Peggy Monk, a 4-H Volunteer, took over the kitchen to teach our youth about canning. The youth worked together to make fresh peach jam and got to take home a jar that they made themselves. Although you might think this is easy and not exactly scientific, you might be wrong. If the temperature is not right things can go very wrong. Bacterias can be generated, yeast can form, and not only could you ruin your jam but you could create something that could make you sick if ingested. Instead our youth learned the right way to make the jam, make sure their jars were sterile, and that they were preserved correctly for future enjoyment.
Janice Fields, the Family and Consumer Science Agent in Robeson County worked with the youth to make whole grain bread. Our youth learned about the properties and importance of yeast, and that it is a live organism that causes the bread to rise and it dies during the heated baking process. They learned how to make whole grain flour and the importance of whole grains in our diet. Probably the most fun was actually kneading and making bread during the day and getting to try the fruits of their efforts.
Angela Shaver, the 4-H Extension Agent from Cumberland County worked with the youth on making ice cream in a bag. Although this sounds like snack time it was much more than that. Working in pairs each group made different kinds of ice cream. Some made it with whole milk, others skim milk, there was half and half as well as whipping cream. Soy milk and goats milk were also used in the process. The youth started by forming hypothesise on which ice cream would be the best and then had to follow a recipe, and measure their ingredients into a bag. That bag was then placed into another bag with ice and they had to shake it up until it was the consistency of ice cream. The science behind this experiment was tasty. First our youth learned the need for proper measurements or things would not turn out very well. They learned about the effects of salt on ice, melting and freezing points. Next it was taste test time and everyone had a taste of each ice cream and learned how the different milks interacted with the ingredients to create different tasting ice cream. Whipping cream by far came out the favorite as youth learned the fat content effects the taste and the more fat in ice cream the smoother and creamer it tastes.
The other activity involved proprieties of all the activities and was lead by our own Robeson County 4-H Agent, Shea Ann DeJarnette. The youth worked together in teams to make their own root beer and then bottled it and took home a liter bottle for themselves. To successfully complete this project there were several steps. They had to successfully measure the ingredients into a one gallon jug. Start a chemical reaction between the yeast and the sugar to create carbonation. Then they had to determine the right time to stop carbonation by refrigerating the bottle. If they stopped carbonation too early their root beer would be flat. If they stopped it too late it would taste bitter and have an alcohol smell to it.
After completing all the activities for the day it was time to head back to the respective counties and prepare for the next day which would allow them to be strong and proud. That is the only clue you get as to tomorrow science adventure.