Science of Cooking
By: Evan Chandler
Brownies
I am making brownies and I am changing the amount of cocoa powder. I am doing this to see how it affects not only the taste but the texture of the brownie.
Hypothesis
I think that the brownies will become darker and have a bitter flavor when I add more cocoa powder and they will become bland and light colored with less cocoa powder. I think that they will become better with more cocoa powder and terrible with less.
Variables
Independent- the amount of cocoa powder in each brownie Dependent- How the brownie tastes and its texture
Control- the original recipe with the recommended amount of cocoa powder Constant- All the other ingredients and the cooking method of the brownies
Recipe
3 tablespoons- granulated sugar
3 tablespoons- all purpose flour
1 ½ tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
Pinch of salt
2 tablespoons chocolate chips
1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
3 tablespoons of milk
¼ teaspoon of vanilla extract
Cooking instructions
Place sugar, flour, cocoa powder and salt in a mug. Use a small whisk or fork, and stir until combined, and free of lumps. Stir in chocolate chips. Add oil, milk and vanilla, stir with a spoon or small rubber spatula until just combined (try not to over mix it).
Sprinkle a few additional chocolate chips over the top and cook in the microwave for about 90 seconds
Before pictures
Less cocoa original recipe more cocoa
During cooking pictures
Less cocoa original recipe more cocoa
After pictures
Less cocoa original recipe more cocoa
Video
feedback
Food Evaluation Sheet name: 
You must complete this form for every food evaluation/tasting you do in class in order to receive credit for your participation. If you do not try a food due to personal reasons, please evaluate to the best of your ability without eating it. Please write down why you didn't try a food. If you do not offer an explanation, you will not get credit for that portion of the assignment. Please use adjectives to describe the different categories (see the suggested adjectives list in class); you must use real words and avoid slang. Do not use a word more than once on this fonm. Tha nk you and...
Bon appetite!
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graph
Cocoa powder
Science of cooking worksheet
Conclusion
I think my hypothesis was mostly correct. The brownies did change in color and taste. For example, the brownie with more cocoa was a lot darker than the one with less. You could also smell and taste the difference between them. The brownie with more cocoa had a strong smell and taste of chocolate while the one with less you could barely smell anything and couldn’t taste any chocolate.
However, I did not think the brownies would differ in texture. They more cocoa powder the more dense it was because they cocoa powder made it thicker and soaked up some moisture. The one with less cocoa powder was runny and was not dense at all because the proportion of liquid to solid was more. That is why I think the brownies changed.