EGGceptional Cupcakes!

For my first mini experiment, as you saw, I tried using egg whites with cookies. This time I wanted to try egg whites with cupcakes! I wanted to see if the results would be the same as the cookies and if the missing fat (from the egg yolk) would affect the cupcakes the same way as the cookies. If you did not see my cookie mini experiment, the cookies with the egg whites stayed compact while the cookies with the regular eggs spread out more! I am also working in a group where three other women are manipulating their cupcakes and we will compare all of ours in class.

Below is a picture of the box of cupcake mix I used along with the ingredients mixed in the bowl.

My Hypothesis: If I bake cupcakes using only egg whites, then the cupcakes will not rise as high as an original cupcake using regular eggs.

My independent variable will be using egg whites in the batch. To make sure this experiment was controlled, my group and I made sure we used the same oil, same cupcake mix, same measurements of dough put into the cupcake pan, and same measuring methods (using a ruler). The dependent variable or what I am measuring is the height and diameter of the cupcake!

Ingredients: 1 cup water, 1/3 cup oil, 1 box of Pillsbury Funfetti Cupkcake mix and three egg whites :)

Below is a picture of all the ingredients being mixed together :)

Step by step:

1.       Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit

2.       Mix egg whites, water, oil and mix into a bowl with a whisk for several minutes until the batter is smooth. (Below is a picture of the smoothness of the batter dripping from the wisp)

3.       Place foil cupcake liners in cupcake pan and fill 2/3 full with batter.

4.       Place into oven for approximately 19-13 minutes or until done (stick a toothpick in and if it comes out clean then they are done :) )

5.       Remove from oven and let cool for 10-15 minutes (Below is a picture of the final product, cooling)

(Below are the six cupcakes I measured :) )

(I used the instructions from the Pillsbury Funfetti Cupcake mix box)

In an ideal world… What would I do differently?

We would use the same oven to keep the heat consistent. We would also make our cupcakes all together so we can measure the exact same amount of batter poured into the cupcake liners. Also, our group being together we would be able to measure the cupcakes after they are done and we would all agree on a certain height and diameter. Since we are all baking on our own, we may have different eyes and thoughts about how tall or wide the cupcake is, also how done the cupcake is.

Results:

                        Height                                                                                                                                                            Width

1.7 inches	2.9 inches
1.4 inches	2.4 inches
1.65 inches	2.6 inches
1.5 inches	2.48 inches
1.25 inches 1.8 inches	2.5 inches 2.5 inches

No To Raw Milk

It should not be legal to sell raw milk. As pointed out in this report, ““Those who consume raw milk are playing Russian roulette with their health; the glass they drink today may not have deadly microorganisms, but the one they drink tomorrow may cause serious health problems or even death.”” Even though people may like this type of milk, it should not be legal because it can cause serious harm to their health. This is similar to selling drugs. Though people may like it, it can affect their health and shouldn’t be legal because they could abuse it.

            Not only could they abuse it, if we make something legal that may make people die, this can cause several problems within the U.S. Companies may start using unpasteurized milk because it is legal and perhaps ‘cheaper.’ They may put a warning symbol on the container but still this may not stop people from purchasing the product. As stated in the report, ““While people with stronger immune systems may be able to overcome the bacteria found in raw milk, children, older people, pregnant women and those with health conditions can be seriously harmed by bacteria in non-pasteurized milk products and should not consume them.”” Children may accidentally consume something like this and get very sick, bringing the blame upon the company that used unpasteurized or raw milk.

            On the other hand, people may say it’s up to ourselves to decipher whether or not we want to consume raw milk. It’s our life; we should be able to do what we want. If we see that it says ‘raw milk’ and ‘may be harmful or lead to death’ then we shouldn’t pick that drink to consume. It’s very similar to eating steak tar-tar which states that it could give one food poising or lead to death. We should be smart enough to know what our bodies can consume and what we cannot consume.

            According to the article, “My customers and I feel that we are well-informed and able to make our own decisions about the food we consume.” This is a very true statement. We should be capable to make our own decisions and know what would be good for us and what would not be good for us. This is very similar to alcohol. Alcohol is legal and can cause death. We should know our limits and know what risks we are taking when buying a product such as unpasteurized milk with many bacteria within it. If we abuse this, that is our own fault because we should know the health risks and the container may say ‘harmful’ or ‘make cause illness or death.’

            Yet, pasteurization is the safe way to go. Since milk is not alcohol and a completely different topic, because younger children are able to drink it, it should not be legal to sell raw milk. Children can purchase this milk and not realize they are drinking raw milk. Raw milk has many health risks for all ages and should not be legal because it would just cause more problems and more illnesses because people or even those under 18 would not be careful with it. We have to keep in consideration that this is a deadly drink and letting younger kids buy it would not be okay. 

What A Yolk!

                I was curious as to see how egg yolk worked within baking cookies. I wanted to see if taking out the egg yolk and just using egg whites would make a difference. Egg yolk has a lot of emulsifiers in it which help bind the ingredients together. I was curious if I took out the egg yolk, would the cookie stay together or would it spread out even more because there were less emulsifiers?

My hypothesis is: If I bake two separate batches of cookies, one with one egg and the other with just one egg white, then the batch of cookies with the egg whites will be greater in diameter than those with the regular egg. My independent variable is taking out the egg yolk in one of the batches and just using egg whites. The dependent variable is the size of the cookie in inches.  I made this experiment controlled by using the same oven, the same cookie mix, the same amount of butter, the same size spoon to place the cookie dough on the pan, and both batches were baked in the same amount of time.

Results:  The batch of cookies that had the regular eggs were larger in size than the batch of cookies that only had egg whites. Cookie with egg yolk 1 was 4.5 inches, cookie with egg yolk 2 was 4.1 inches, and cookie with egg yolk 3 was 4.2 inches. Cookie with egg white 1 was 3 inches, cookie with egg white 2 was 3.6 inches, and cookie with egg white 3 was 3.1 inches.

These were the cookies that had the regular egg in them! (Below)

These were the cookies that had only the egg white! (Below)

 The cookies on the left are the ones with only egg whites and to the right are the cookies with the regular eggs. (Below) 

In an ideal world, I would use something to make sure the cookie dough placed on the pan were all the exact same size before baking. I would also use an oven with convection bake so I didn’t have to flip around the pans. To better my experiment, I would make about 10 batches of each, 10 with egg yolk and 10 without egg yolk. This would give me a better idea if the egg whites really do affect the cookies and get a more precise number of the difference of the diameter.

Betty Crocker Chocolate Chip Oatmeal cookies were the cookies I made. For the first batch, I used one stick of margarine (melted), one egg, and the pre-made Betty Crocker Chocolate Chip Oatmeal mix. For the second batch, I used one stick of margarine (melted), one egg white, and the pre-made Betty Crocker Chocolate Chip Oatmeal mix. I melted the margarine in the microwave and poured that into a medium mixing bowl. I poured the pre-made mix in the mixing bowl. Then, I cracked one regular egg into the bowl. I mixed the stirred until all of the ingredients were mixed. I took a regular table spoon and scooped out several globs of the cookie dough and put it onto a pam sprayed pan. For the second batch, I did everything the exact same, except I took out the egg yolk and just used egg whites. I used the step-by-step directions on the back of the Betty Crocker pre-made package.

Overall, I rejected my original hypothesis. Cookies with egg whites seem to be smaller than cookies with the yolk and the egg white. I was surprised but also fascinated and am curious to do more research and find out why this happened! 

This is a graph of the results. The diameter (inches) of the cookies is on the Y Axis and the number of the cookie is on the X Axis. The blue bars are the cookies with the regular egg and the red bars are the cookies with just the egg whites.

Introductory Post

My name is Nina Mack and I am a senior at Loras College. :) I am majoring in Media Studies and am currently a Sports Anchor / Reporter for LCTV SportsZONE. I am currently enrolled in the Science of Food & Cooking class and have several personal learning goals which include:

1. Better my cooking! I usually stick to only several recipes and meals, which are getting boring and old. I want to learn new things to try!

2. Learn the science behind cooking and food. I want to know why certain foods take longer to cook and what needs to be added to them and why. I'm also very curious to learn what makes up certain foods and how that effects the cooking aspect! 

3. Experiment! I really want to experiment with different foods, temperatures, materials, etc. I am always scared to make something because I don't think it will turn out good or will taste bad. I want to get over that fear and get really creative in the kitchen! 

4. Learn tricks that I will use for the rest of my cooking career. I know there may be simpler ways or healthier ways to cook food and I'd love to learn more about that. It's important to put healthy foods into your body and I am a health nut wanting to learn more about that. :)