Why do I have to sit in Chem Lab? When will I ever use Chemistry???

Well, how about in the kitchen? It’s holiday time, and I’ve done a fair share of baking and cooking this year, as usual. The melding of ingredients, and the smells and textures of batters are making me think of organic chemistry lab. Yes, I’m weird. Isn’t it obvious by now?

Really, I tell anyone who does science for a living that if you can do science, you can cook. And I suspect that the reverse is also true. I’ll wager that if someone is very good in the kitchen, then they’d also be quite good at the lab bench. You just can’t eat your results there.

The precise mixtures of ingredients and heat (and in some cases cold—if you chill cookie dough before baking, for example) meld the ingredients and set in place chemical reactions that result in all sorts of tasty concoctions.

Biochemically speaking, there are three classes of molecules that we use for calories and nutrition: proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. All are organic molecules, meaning that all form their chemical structures based on a backbone made of the element Carbon. We need all three to make up the cellular structure in our bodies.

Now there are more things necessary in cooking than proteins, carbohydrates, and fats, depending on what you’re making. Breads need yeast to biologically convert some of the carbohydrate in the flour into carbon dioxide gas and alcohol to provide lift, structure, and flavor. Not using yeast, soda breads use baking powder and/or baking soda, which create carbon dioxide chemically with the addition of water and heat. (A short experiment—take a small amount of baking powder and mix on a spoon with water, and watch the bubbles form—this is carbon dioxide gas, which provides the lift needed in cakes, cookies, and soda breads).

I made a lot of sweet soda breads for the holiday this year. One was coconut macadamia nut bread. Very tasty. However, the recipe that I have, as it stands, is coconut macadamia nut BANANA bread. Problem: my husband doesn’t like banana, but he’s a huge fan of coconut and macadamia nuts. So, the easy solution is to just leave out the banana, which I did. But think of that for a minute. What does that do to the texture of the dough and the result of the recipe?

The recipe calls for 3 bananas. We don’t like the flavor of banana, but we still want the sweetness and fat that the bananas add to the batter. So, on a very basic level, if I leave out the banana, I should increase the amount of butter and sugar. Which I did. I’ve made this recipe by just leaving out the banana and not compensating at all, and I was left with a non-descript, crumbly mass that vaguely tasted of coconut. I increased the butter and sugar and got a sweet, moist bread full of coconut and macadamia nuts and none of the offending banana.

For more on food and the science behind food, check out my favorite cooking show on the Food Network. It’s called Good Eats, hosted by Alton Brown. It’s funny, and has great recipes. Alton Brown has great visual aids to show you how certain ingredients work, scientifically. Why ingredients have to be added in certain orders, why things must cook for certain lengths of time, etc. He has a great show where he takes the same chocolate chip cookie recipe and with slight variations shows you how to make 3 different types of cookies: flat and crunchy, tall and cakey, and very chewy. All by slight variations of ingredients (butter or shortening), baking powder (less of it means less rising), and temperature of dough (colder dough yields taller cookies because they ultimately have less time at the target temperature, so don’t flatten as much).

Fascinating and tasty chemistry! You do use it in real life!

CORRECTION: I've been caught in a factual error. Bananas contain almost no fat. The USDA gives a fat content for bananas of 0.4 g for a medium (118 g) banana. I just suppose the bread tastes better with all the extra butter.