The Science Chef: 100 Fun Food Experiments and Recipes for Kids [Paperback]

Joan D'Amico (Author), Karen E. Drummond (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up

What melts in your mouth and not in your hands, plumps when you cook it, and comes in more than forty-eight scrumptious flavors? Give up? The correct answer is: Science!

With The Science Chef you'll learn loads of basic science by doing fun, easy-to-perform cooking projects. And you get to eat the results when you're finished!

Why do onions make you cry? How does yeast make bread rise? What makes popcorn pop, whipped cream frothy, and angel food cake fluffy? You'll discover the scientific answers to these and dozens of other tasty mysteries when you prepare kid-tested recipes for everything from Cinnamon Toast and Basic Baked Potatoes to Stromboli Pizzoli and Monkey Bread.

Whether you're a beginner or an experienced cook, you can become a great Science Chef. All 100 experiments and recipes require only common ingredients and standard kitchen utensils. And The Science Chef includes rules for kitchen safety and cleanup, plus a complete nutrition guide.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-9-"In baking, it is often possible to substitute applesauce or prune butter for fat." If for nothing else than that factoid, this book is worthy of purchase. Fortunately, there is much more in it that young scientists and cooks will find useful. There are some inaccuracies (it is gas in onions that causes tears, not oil) but that is a minor quibble compared to the fascinating sections on making curds and whey (and why it is called "cottage cheese"), why popcorn pops, and why one bad apple can spoil the whole barrel. Scientific information is kept to a chatty minimum, as this is not a treatise on the makeup of the foods we eat, but rather a way for kids (young and not so young) to have fun cooking. Each chapter begins with facts about the topic, followed by a brief experiment to illustrate the concept and recipes that range in skill level from no experience to some experience, with one recipe for angel food cake that requires a fair amount of expertise. However, the author's view of level of experience tends to be very optimistic. Other cookbooks contain more scientific information, but this is a good basic source. Attractively illustrated with black-and-white line drawings, easy and interesting to read, and filled with tidbits of information.
Carole B. Kirkpatrick, Terminal Park Elementary School, Auburn, WA
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 4-6. Although this covers some of the same territory as Mandell's Simple Kitchen Experiments , there's somewhat less attention to science here than to food itself. Each chapter begins with an experiment of some sort, followed by a brief explanation of what happened. A few of the experiments seem too simple for the target age group, but most adequately introduce some intriguing food property that will help kids become better cooks. Several well-chosen, clearly worded recipes, graded by difficulty, follow each project. The glossary is rather scattershot, and the cartoon artwork is more decorative than illustrative of cooking techniques. But the information about food labels is a real plus, as is the appended section that includes facts about food storage, molds, and pesticides. A note about safety appears in the introduction. Stephanie Zvirin

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Paperback: 180 pages
• Publisher: Jossey-Bass; 1 edition (September 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 047131045X
• ISBN-13: 978-0471310457
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #230,020 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars a little disappointed, April 17, 2010

By 

Iris Willy (Montana) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Science Chef: 100 Fun Food Experiments and Recipes for Kids (Paperback)

This book is good, however it doesn't go far enough - the "experiments" are not really experiments, I guess we expected a little more instant results than growing basil or potatoes. By the time the plant is grown the desire for the recipes is forgotten. Also expected more involved experiments, not just watching water freeze or whether to butter bread before or after toasting!

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Kids love to learn, February 27, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Science Chef: 100 Fun Food Experiments and Recipes for Kids (Paperback)

This book is fascinating and exciting. Not only do children enjoy the recipes, but they learn in a fun way. It is an easy way of learning new information and keeps them interested.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great start for experimenting n the kitchen, March 25, 2009

By 

K. Brecht "history amour" (Silver Spring, MD United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Science Chef: 100 Fun Food Experiments and Recipes for Kids (Paperback)

Our first-grade granddaughter was assigned a science project, and she chose to make cottage cheese from different milks, e.g., organic, skim, heavy cream and whole and compare the results. We used information from "Science Chef" about making cheese as one of our sources. Then we went beyond with growing penicillin mold on lemons and floating eggs in highly salinated water. Great learning device!