early science – Baking with Belle

Belle wanted pasta (for like the 10th time in two days, because toddler palates are so very varied). I wanted to occupy her while I cooked and to make the food fun. Enter rainbow pasta!

Rainbow pasta dye stations — Make predictions and observations about what will happen when colors are mixed.

Today’s target is a little learning about the color wheel and mixing colors, so the key is getting Belle to pay attention to what happens when red and yellow are mixed, or yellow and blue, or blue and red. At not quite 3, she’s a little young for predictions, though we try with “What do you think would happen if…?” Instead, we focus on pausing to observe the water after we add food coloring. “Let’s add a little bit more and see what happens – yes, it’s more red now! What if we add yellow? Is it still red or a little bit orange? More yellow? A lot a bit orange!”

Once the pasta is added, the next question is if it will change the pasta. Belle needed encouragement to “shake, shake, shake! Now check!” but eventually got it and was extra enthusiastic about rinsing the pasta and taste-testing for differences.

Shaking purple pasta — Buddy got into the action – shake, shake, shake!

We didn’t – but could have – used the differently colored pieces of pasta to actually build a rainbow on a plate or piece of paper, thereby reinforcing the order of colors in a rainbow and fine motor placement.

Skills worked on:

Early art (color wheel, rainbow)
Early science (predictions, observations)
Gross motor (upper body shaking)
Fine motor (drops of food coloring)

Equipment:

5 pint/quart jars with lids, or ziplock bags
Pot
Colander

Recipe (30 min, yield: 1 box of cooked pasta):

1 box of pasta (type doesn’t matter)
Food coloring (red, blue, and yellow at a minimum)
Water

Cook pasta according to directions. As it cooks, set up the dye stations.
In 5 jars or ziplock bags, add 2 tbsp water and 10 drops of food coloring as follows: Red: 10 drops red; Orange: 5 drops yellow + 5 drops red, Yellow: not applicable since you’ll use undyed pasta; Green: 5 drops yellow + 5 drops blue; Blue: 10 drops blue; Purple: 5 drops red + 5 drops blue. Note that none of this has to be precise.
Drain the pasta in a colander. Portion the pasta into your dye stations, putting 1/6 back into the pot.
Seal your dye/pasta container and shake! Get everything good and covered.
One color at a time, put pasta back into colander to rinse off excess dye, then add back into the pot. Toss and serve with your favorite sauce or topping.

This recipe is part of our coronavirus/Covid-19 quarantine bake-along. See the previous recipe here: Irish Brown Soda Bread. See the next recipe here: No Sugar Added Whole Wheat Banana Bread

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On Belle’s baking wishlist today: pink donuts, bagels, ba’na bread, pancakes, and lollipops. Her faith in my ability to make lollipops is adorable…I imagine I need corn syrup, flavoring, sugar, maybe food coloring? But we started pizza dough last night, so that’s what we made today. Also, it’s Pi(e) Day.

Belle’s speech has gotten a lot clearer since the last time we posted recipes, which means I’m getting to talk about baking science, in terms an almost three year old would understand. Hooray! Our recipe calls for yeast, which is where we focused our science lesson.

Yeast in the jar: napping

Yeast with warm liquid: taking a bath and swimming and having babies and farting

Adding whey to yeast — Belle is pouring by herself, which risks not everything making it into the bowl, but is great for motor control.

Adding sugar: something for the yeast to eat

Bubbly, foamy liquid: yeast farts after eating

Risen dough with bubbles: from all the yeast farts

Risen yeast dough with bubbles — A bit of plastic wrap right on top of the dough captures the yeast farts!

Can you tell we have a lot of conversations about bodily functions? In reality, the active dry yeast is more or less in hibernation without moisture. If the liquid is too hot (greater than about 110°F), the yeast will be killed. If the liquid is too cold (less than about 95°) the yeast won’t multiply. Giving it sugar allows for quick eating and multiplying. Starch, like flour, is a better food for longer term consumption, and the gluten strands in it trap the CO2. Once salt is added, it creates a less-ideal environment for yeast multiplication, so there’s not as much foaming or CO2 off-gassing. CO2 is the byproduct of fermentation (this process of multiplying), and when it gets trapped in the gluten, the dough rises. There are some cool experiments floating around the internet that examine this process in a more scientific manner, but for our purposes, we just make dough.

Meanwhile, we are still focused on some of our usual skills: sequencing (scoop, tip, check), labeling our tools (now including a thermometer), size comparisons (“we need a spoon twice as big”) and sensory vocabulary (wet, sticky, dusty).

Mixing a shaggy dough by hand — Hand mixing the dough is a sensory experience!

Skills worked on:

Early science (fermentation, life cycle, liquid/solid/gas)
Vocabulary
Kitchen improvisation and flavor combinations (what tastes good together on a pizza?)
Fine motor (scooping)
Gross motor (mixing, kneading, stretching dough)
Early math (estimates, halving dough)
Patience (overnight rise)
Measuring

Equipment:

Mixing bowl
Thermometer
Measuring spoons
Plastic wrap or tea towel

Recipe (30 min active prep, overnight rise; yield: 2 pizzas):

This recipe is adapted from Domestikatedlife‘s New England Invite, by Kate Bowler. I love this cookbook and highly recommend it!

1/4 tsp active dry yeast (there are about 2 1/4 tsp in a standard yeast packet)
1 tsp sugar
1 1/2 c warm whey or water (100-110°F)
3 1/4 c flour
2 1/2 t salt
Flour or cornmeal for dusting
Sauce
Herbs and spices
Toppings
Cheese

Warm 1 1/2 c whey or water to 100-110°F. Whey is a byproduct of drained Instant Pot yogurt in our house and takes about 50 sec to warm in a microwave on high; it will give a lacto-fermented flavor a little like sourdough. Otherwise, tap water is fine. Use a thermometer to ensure correct temperature. Wait for it to cool, if necessary.
Measure out 1/4 tsp of yeast into the mixing bowl. If you use part of a package of yeast, put the remainder in an airtight container to keep humidity out.
Sprinkle 1 tsp sugar on top.
Add the warm liquid to the mixing bowl, and wait 5 minutes. It should be a uniform foamy tan now, definitely not clear liquid with visible granules.
Add 2 1/2 tsp salt to the liquid to slow yeast fermentation, then add 3 1/4 c flour (or whole wheat flour).
Use one hand to mix flour and liquid into a shaggy dough and form into a ball.
Divide into two bowls. Cover each with a tea towel or plastic wrap and place the bowl in a warm place like near a radiator or in a closed oven with the oven light on. Let rest 12-24 hours. Dough will double.
The next day, oil or flour hands and punch dough down. Turn dough out onto a floured surface and knead back into a ball. At this point, you can put it into an oiled ziplock bag to freeze (allow 24 hours to thaw in fridge).
Preheat oven to 450°F.
Stretch the dough in your hands, using gravity to help you. Use cornmeal liberally to prevent sticking.
Top with sauce, toppings, and cheese. Meat should be pre-cooked; small, uniformly sized veggies may be frozen or fresh.
Cook on pizza stone or cookie sheet until cheese bubbles and dough seems firm, about 15 min. Let cool 3-5 min before cutting and serving.

This recipe is part of our coronavirus/Covid-19 quarantine bake-along. See the previous recipe here: Coconut Macaroons See the next recipe here: Irish Brown Soda Bread

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Tag: early science

Rainbow Pasta

Pizza Pie