Play with Your Food: 7 Fun Food-related Experiments

In honour of the father out there, here are seven fun “sciencey” food-related experiments for daddy and the kids to try – or for the whole family for that matter! Invisible Lemon Ink

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A pretty basic experiment involving lemons, but still fun nonetheless! What you need • Whole lemon or bottled lemon juice • Sunlight or any other heat source (e.g. light bulb) • Paper • Paintbrush or large cotton swab What to do 1. If you've chosen a whole lemon, squeeze its juice into a bowl. If you've selected bottled lemon juice, pour it into a bowl. 2. Use the lemon juice as 'ink' and get your young ones to write or draw something using a paintbrush or large cotton swab on a piece of paper. 3. Allow the paper to dry. 4. Bring the paper to a heat source (whether it's natural sunlight or a simple light bulb, the latter is recommended), and tell your kids to watch what happens! ---- The Naked Egg Experiment

Photo courtesy of Steve Spangler Science

What is a naked egg? Well, a naked egg is an egg without its shell, of course! After this week-long experiment (yes, a lot of patience and waiting is required), you’ll get a rubbery, soft, somewhat bouncy egg. It’s pretty weird and the kids will definitely be amazed! What you need • An egg • Tall glass • Vinegar What to do 1. Gently place the egg in the glass and pour in vinegar until it is completely submerged. 2. Leave the egg in the vinegar for 24 hours. You’ll notice bubbles forming on the shell. 3. After a full 24 hours, change the vinegar. Pour the old vinegar away (careful with the egg) and fill the glass with new vinegar. 4. Keep your experiment away in a safe place for seven days. While waiting during the next few days, do not disturb the egg! 5. After a week, slowly pour the vinegar away and carefully rinse the egg with water. Tadah – you have your naked egg! ---- Bubbling Lava Lamp

Photo courtesy of Steve Spangler Science

Everyone knows lava lamps are ultra cool. You just need one of these things in your room and voila, it automatically gives it a different vibe. So how bout’ making one from scratch? What you need • Clean, plastic soda bottle, glass or jar • Soda bottle cap • Vegetable oil (the cheaper the better) • Food colouring (choose your favourite colour) • Alka-Seltzer tablet or fizzy tablets • Big flashlight • Water What to do 1. Fill the bottle or container 3/4 full with vegetable oil. 2. Fill the rest of the bottle or container with water (almost to the top but not overflowing). 3. Add about 10 drops of food colouring. Make sure the water turns fairly dark in colour. 4. Divide the Alka-Seltzer tablet into eight pieces. 5. Drop one of the pieces of Alka-Seltzer into the oil and water mixture. Watch what happens. 6. When the bubbling stops, add another chunk of Alka-Seltzer. Observe further. 7. If you want to make it even more "lava-like" place your bottle or container on top of a huge flashlight and turn the room lights off. 8. When you have used up all of the Alka-Seltzer tablets and when the bubbling has completely stopped, screw on the soda bottle cap (or container cap). You now have your own lava lamp! ---- Jumping Rice Krispies Moving inanimate objects fascinates us all, no matter how young or old we are. Try this experiment out and watch in awe. Oh, and after it’s all over, you can go ahead and eat the Rice Krispies too. What you need • Handful of Rice Krispies • Plate of plexiglas • Wooden blocks, ceramic cups, or something similar to balance the plate 1–3 inches above the table (table should be non-metallic) • Wool sweater What to do 1. Spread the Rice Krispies out on the table surface. 2. Put the wooden blocks or other non-conductive materials on the table, and balance the plate of plexiglas over the table and the pile of Rice Krispies. 3. Vigorously rub the top of the plexiglas with the wool sweater. Presenting the jumping Rice Krispies! ---- Homemade Glue

Do you have any idea how easy it is to make your own glue out of simple ingredients such as milk, vinegar and baking soda? What you need • Mixing spoon • Cheesecloth • 2 small paper drinking cups • 1/4 cup milk • 1 tablespoon white vinegar • Baking soda (just a pinch) What to do 1. Pour the milk into one of the paper cups. Add the vinegar and stir for one minute. The mixture will form clumps (curds) and clear liquid (whey). 2. Place the cheesecloth over the second cup and push the middle down a bit. 3. Holding the cheesecloth in place, slowly pour the curds and whey into the cloth. Most of the whey will flow through the cloth into the cup. Gently squeeze the rest of the whey into the cup and then throw the liquid whey away. 4. Scrape the curds into the empty cup. Add the pinch of baking soda and stir well. You've got glue! ---- DIY Butter Believe it or not, you can actually make butter on your own. Plus, it’s really easy. Watch the video to find out how. Follow the instructions closely to get the results you want! Find more great dining deals with OpenSnap Great offers you don't want to miss out on!