What if your significant other gifted you baking powder instead of chocolates? What if they invented baking powder? In 1843, British chemist Alfred Bird did just that for his lucky, yeast-allergic,...
Like most chemists, I like to cook. After all, what is cooking but the appropriate mixing of chemicals? In the lab we use flasks and beakers, but how do we equip our kitchen? Tiffany's in New...
In 2001, a Belgian physician experienced two episodes of bitter, metallic taste that lasted for several days and noted that both had occurred after he had eaten pine nuts. He mentioned this to a...
Sir Francis Bacon, an important figure in the development of the scientific method, claimed in his work on natural history that when a basil plant was exposed too much to the sun, it became wild...
Margarine is fat. It’s just a different kind of fat from butter. Whereas butter contains mostly saturated fats, margarine’s fats are unsaturated. This just refers to a slight variation in the...
That’s an interesting question. How lettuce turns brown is well known. But why this happens is a different story. Let's deal with the how first. The chemistry that takes place when lettuce leaves...
Its catapult to popularity may have been triggered by the pandemic-induced yeast shortages, but even months later, when instant yeast is once again available at most grocery stores, sourdough’s...
So, you’re tired of eating lousy french fries. You’re sick of those limp dark brown grease sponges. What can you do? Make them! Let’s for a moment forget nutrition and health. In this area, french...
If, like me, you aim to cook dinners that provide both your next day’s lunch as well as a freezer portion to be thawed at some future date, you may want to stop. At least with rice.
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