Sixth Grade, Cooking & Food Science Projects, Lessons, Activities (Page 6)

The Freezer: It Keeps Your Carrots Awake at Night!

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Brrrr, freezing cold! It's the worst nightmare of any fresh fruit or vegetable! If the produce in your kitchen had legs, they would run in a panic every time the freezer door opens. Why? Well, freezing temperatures are not kind to fresh produce. Freezing kills the plant tissues and alters them on both a chemical and physical level. Chemically, the enzymes in the produce become more concentrated and do not work normally, so that discoloration, off-flavors, vitamin breakdown, and toughness may… Read more

The Sweet Beginnings of Caramelization

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Caramelization is the name of the cooking process that occurs as sugar is heated and the molecules begin to break apart. But what happens to the sugar as it breaks apart? And what do the physical changes mean for the flavor of the sugar? Using the Internet or cookbooks, read up on the chemistry of caramelization, then head to the kitchen with an adult to caramelize your own batch of sugar. With an adult's help, dissolve 1 1/3 cups of sugar in 2/3 cup of water. Heat the mixture in a pan over… Read more

What's the Best Way to Guarantee Fresh Bread?

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Have you ever bitten into a slice of bread only to find that it no longer seems fresh? Instead, it has the firm, undesirable texture that comes about when the bread is going stale. Chemically, what happens during the staling process? Can it be reversed (at least temporarily)? Do some background research to answer these questions and then apply those answers to one (or more) of the following experiments to find the optimal state to keep your bread fresh. Experiment 1: What Temperature Keeps… Read more

Comparing Cranberry Condiments

STEM Activity

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Does your family have jellied cranberry sauce with Thanksgiving dinner? Jellied cranberries are thick and retain the shape of the mold in which they are placed, which might mean a turkey-shaped mold or even the shape of the can if you use a canned version. Taking a bite of jiggly jellied cranberries can be a fun addition to a delicious meal, but cranberries can also be served as a liquid-like sauce. Both versions use the same ingredients, so what makes one turn into a gelatin while the other… Read more

Have Your Chips Lost Their Chomp? Understanding How Food Becomes Rancid

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

You are looking under your bed for that video game you want to play, when you come across a real treasure—an open bag of potato chips that you forgot about! A crispy and salty potato chip is a tasty treat. But wait! This potato chip is not crisp and does not taste as great as it should. What happened? The chips have gone rancid! In this cooking and food science fair project, you will look into what factors turned your chips rancid. Read more

Maple Syrup Candy

STEM Activity

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Have you ever cooked up homemade candy, maybe from chocolate or table sugar? Maple syrup is not only deliciously gooey and great on breakfast foods like pancakes and waffles—you can also turn it into maple candies with an amazing range of textures! It can be made into sticky maple taffy, or hard, molded maple sugar candy. In this science activity, you will investigate how the temperature of heated maple syrup affects what types of candies can be made from it. Read more

Mean & Green: Fruit & Vegetable Hardening

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

When you open a can of green beans, have you ever wondered why the beans are not mushy, or more like a puree? Canning requires boiling the beans for a long period of time to kill bacteria, so why don't the beans fall apart into small pieces? Some fruits and vegetables—like cherries, apples, potatoes, sweet potatoes, beets, carrots, beans, cauliflower, and tomatoes—have the ability to undergo hardening, or firming of their plant tissues. A special enzyme, called pectin methyl… Read more

Tasty Arrangements: How to Position Food in Microwave Cooking

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

When you think of successful inventions from the 1900's that have dramatically changed how people live, what comes to mind? The car? Radio? TV? The computer? What about the microwave oven? You might not remember a time when microwave ovens were not a standard part of most kitchens, but your parents or grandparents probably do. They can remember when heating leftovers took a good 30 minutes in a traditional oven. Or thawing a food from the freezer meant leaving it in the refrigerator overnight.… Read more

The Effect of Roasting on Color, Flavor, and Texture of Peanut Butter

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Peanut butter is a popular ingredient in sandwiches, cookies, and many other common foods. In this cooking and food science fair project, you will roast peanuts in the oven at 350 degrees for 20, 30, and 40 minutes to produce variable levels of color and flavor. Roasting not only adds complex flavors to the peanuts, but it also destroys enzymes that produce off-flavors. Each lot of roasted peanuts will be used to make a batch of peanut butter. You will evaluate each batch of peanut butter for… Read more

Sixth Grade, Cooking & Food Science Projects, Lessons, Activities (59 results)

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