The Task
My group, James, Wesley, Maddie, and I, was assigned the task to create an art piece using chemistry. We had to create a project with four artistic components and explain the chemistry behind each component. Each component is connected by a general theme. Certain projects will be chosen to be presented at the opening of San Marin's new STEM building. Like the last project, my group decided to take a different approach to this task. Instead of four pieces of art connected with a general theme, we created one big piece of art and discussed four different aspects of the project. We made a Minecraft themed cake and presented the art of making, baking, decorating, and tasting.
The Recipe
The recipe used was taken from this website:
www.allrecipes.com/recipe/254203/minecraft-cake/
The following steps are the steps to make the cake:
Step 1
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour two 9-inch square cake pans.
Step 2
Sift 2 1/3 cups plus 1 1/2 tablespoon flour, 1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl.
Step 3
Beat butter and white sugar together in a bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla extract. Add flour mixture alternately with 1 cup plus 1 1/2 tablespoon milk, mixing batter gently between each addition.
Step 4
Divide batter evenly between the prepared cake pans.
Step 5
Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 30 to 40 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan. Invert onto a wire rack to cool completely, about 30 minutes.
Step 6
Trim tops of cake layers to make sure they are flat. Set 1 layer on a serving platter. Spread jam on top; cover with second layer. Spread chocolate buttercream frosting over top and sides of the cake, reserving about 2 tablespoons frosting.
Step 7
Pinch off a piece of marzipan the size of a golf ball. Add red food coloring and knead until color is evenly distributed.
Step 8
Dust a flat work surface with confectioners' sugar and roll out remaining, undyed, marzipan. Cut out a 9-inch square; carefully transfer to the top of the cake.
Step 9
Roll trimmings of marzipan and cut into four 9x1-1/2-inch strips. Cut 3 rectangular notches into 1 edge of each strip. Press strips onto the sides of the cake, notches facing down; gently press top and strips of marzipan together to adhere.
Step 10
Roll out red marzipan and cut into squares of varying sizes. Spread a little of the reserved frosting on the back of each square to act as a glue; arrange in a random Minecraft pattern on top of the cake.
www.allrecipes.com/recipe/254203/minecraft-cake/
The following steps are the steps to make the cake:
Step 1
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour two 9-inch square cake pans.
Step 2
Sift 2 1/3 cups plus 1 1/2 tablespoon flour, 1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl.
Step 3
Beat butter and white sugar together in a bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla extract. Add flour mixture alternately with 1 cup plus 1 1/2 tablespoon milk, mixing batter gently between each addition.
Step 4
Divide batter evenly between the prepared cake pans.
Step 5
Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 30 to 40 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan. Invert onto a wire rack to cool completely, about 30 minutes.
Step 6
Trim tops of cake layers to make sure they are flat. Set 1 layer on a serving platter. Spread jam on top; cover with second layer. Spread chocolate buttercream frosting over top and sides of the cake, reserving about 2 tablespoons frosting.
Step 7
Pinch off a piece of marzipan the size of a golf ball. Add red food coloring and knead until color is evenly distributed.
Step 8
Dust a flat work surface with confectioners' sugar and roll out remaining, undyed, marzipan. Cut out a 9-inch square; carefully transfer to the top of the cake.
Step 9
Roll trimmings of marzipan and cut into four 9x1-1/2-inch strips. Cut 3 rectangular notches into 1 edge of each strip. Press strips onto the sides of the cake, notches facing down; gently press top and strips of marzipan together to adhere.
Step 10
Roll out red marzipan and cut into squares of varying sizes. Spread a little of the reserved frosting on the back of each square to act as a glue; arrange in a random Minecraft pattern on top of the cake.
The Presentation
To present the final project, we created a Google Slides presentation. We structured it by explaining the purpose and theme, the recipe, the first and second attempts at baking it, the chemistry behind the four art aspects (making, baking, decorating, tasting), and the display placard. We added animations and a variety of pictures pictures and made sure that the audience would stay interested throughout the presentation.
First Attempt |
Second Attempt |
Important Concepts
General Terms:
Ion - An ion is an atom that doesn't have a neutral charge. It can either have a positive charge (cation) or a negative charge (anion).
Synthesis Reaction - In a synthesis reaction, at least two reactants react together to create one product. Its general equation is: A + B > AB
Decomposition Reaction - In a decomposition reaction, one reactant reacts to create at least two products. Its general equation is: AB > A + B
Single Replacement Reaction - In a single replacement reaction, a cation replaces another cation, or an anion replaces another anion in the reactants. Its general equation is: A + BC > AC + B
Double Replacement Reaction - In a double replacement reaction, the cations switch places in the reactants. Its general equation is: AB + CD > AD + BC
Combustion Reaction - In a combustion reaction, a substance, typically a hydrocarbon, which is a substance consisting of hydrogen and carbon, reacts with oxygen and heat to create carbon dioxide and water. This is burning.
Minecraft - Minecraft is a Swedish sandbox video game released in 2011. It has sold 180 million copies since its release, making it the best-selling game in video game history. In Minecraft, cakes are food blocks that the player can consume. The Minecraft cake was the group's theme and inspiration.
Art of Making:
Sift - Sifting is the act of putting a powder through a sieve to remove lumps or large particles and to equally distribute the powder across the bowl. We sifted the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt when making the cake.
Gluten - Gluten is a substance typically found in cereal grains that is responsible for the elastic texture of dough. It is a mixture of two proteins and is created when flour reacts with water.
Coagulation - Coagulation is the action of a liquid changing to a solid or a semi-solid state. This phenomenon occurred when we cracked the eggs.
Sodium Bicarbonate - Sodium bicarbonate is a chemical compound with the formula NaHCO3. It is commonly known as baking soda. Baking powder consists of sodium bicarbonate and an acid, meaning that it only needs a liquid to activate, rather than baking soda needing both an acid and liquid to activate.
Art of Baking:
Carbon Dioxide - Carbon dioxide is a gaseous compound with the chemical formula CO2. It is created when the baking powder reacts with liquid and heat, creating the gas. This gas makes the cake rise in the oven.
Functional Group - A functional group is a specific grouping of atoms within molecules that give the molecule certain characteristics. A functional group will always undergo the same or similar chemical reaction no matter what kind of molecule it's part of.
Maillard Reaction - The Maillard reaction is a reaction in baking in which sugars and amino acids react with heat to create browning. This browning is the familiar color and odor baked goods have. An example would be the crust around baked bread. When the cake was placed in the oven, the sugars in the ingredients underwent this reaction.
The steps of the Maillard reaction are:
1. Reducing sugars and amino acids react with heat to create glycosylamine and water.
2. Glycosylamine undergoes Amadori rearrangement to create ketosamines.
3. Ketosamines further break down to create the brown color and odor associated in baked goods.
Caramelization - Caramelization is the oxidation of sugar via heat that also creates a brown color and odor. It is sometimes done with a blowtorch. Caramelization and the Maillard reaction are different because the Maillard reaction requires an amino acid, while caramelization doesn't.
Carbonyl - Carbonyl is one of the functional groups. It consists of a carbon atom double bonded to an oxygen atom. In the Maillard reaction, the carbonyl end of the sugar reacts with the amino acid in heat to create glycosylamine.
Glycosylamine - Glycosylamine is a biochemical compound consisting of a glycosyl molecule, which is a free radical (molecule with at least one unpaired electron), bonded to an amine functional group.
Amadori Rearrangement - Amadori rearrangement is an organic reaction in which a glycosylamine molecule rearranges itself into a ketose. The reaction is catalyzed by either an acid or base. The acid found in the baking powder helps cause this reaction to occur during the reaction.
Ketosamine - A ketosamine is a molecule comprised of a ketose and an amine. It is created as a result of Amadori rearrangement and it further breaks down to create the browning of the Maillard reaction.
Ketose - A ketose is a form of the ketone functional group. It is a monosaccharide (simple sugar) containing one ketone per molecule. It is part of the ketosamine.
Amine - An amine is a functional group derived from ammonia (NH3). It is found in both the glycosylamine and the ketosamine of the Maillard reaction.
Art of Decorating:
Electromagnetic Spectrum - The electromagnetic spectrum is the range of frequencies and wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation. The waves with the most energy and smallest wavelength are gamma waves, while the waves with the least energy and the largest wavelength are radio waves.
Visible Spectrum - The visible spectrum is a range of electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths stretching from 400 to 700 nanometers. This range consists of all the colors the human eye can see. The smallest wavelengths are the color violet and the largest wavelengths are the color red. The range, from largest wavelength to smallest wavelength, is red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet.
Primary Color - The primary colors are colors that cannot be created through mixture. They are colors that are used to create all the other colors. The primary colors are red, yellow, and blue.
Secondary Color - The secondary colors are colors created through the mixture of the primary colors. They are green, violet, and orange.
Tertiary Color - The tertiary colors are colors created through the mixture of primary and secondary colors. They are yellow-orange, red-orange, red-violet, blue-violet, blue-green, and yellow-green.
Color Theory - Color theory is a scientific and artistic theory pertaining to the usage of colors to create a desired effect. This theory is primarily used in design and art in order for things to have certain effects on viewers.
Color Scheme - A color scheme is a set of colors used together for design. Every color scheme has some sort of effect on the people that view the scheme.
Complementary Color Scheme - A complementary color scheme is a color scheme consisting of two colors across from each other on the color wheel. Examples include the schemes red and green and blue and orange.
Analogous Color Scheme - An analogous color scheme is a color scheme consisting of three colors side by side on the color wheel. An example is red, red-orange, and orange. In our cake, we used an analogous color scheme because we used red and brown, a shade of orange, together on a cake.
Triadic Color Scheme - A triadic color scheme is a color scheme that uses colors on the color wheel that form a triangle. These color schemes tend to be all the primary colors, all the secondary colors, or all the tertiary colors. An example is red, yellow, and blue.
Art of Tasting:
Saccharide - A saccharide is a sweet-tasting carbohydrate; it is a sugar. Monosaccharides, disaccharides, and polysaccharides consist of one sugar molecule, two sugar molecules, or more than two sugar molecules, respectively. In our cake, sucrose was abundant, which is a disaccharide.
Sucrose - Sucrose is a disaccharide consisting of glucose and fructose. It has the molecular formula of C12H22O11. Sucrose is just white sugar, so we used sucrose in our recipe.
Taste Buds - Taste buds are sensory organs found on the tongue used to perceive tastes. The five main tastes are sweet, salty, bitter, sour, and umami (savory). Fructose, because of its sweet flavor, activates the sweet taste buds.
Neurotransmitter - A neurotransmitter is a chemical used in neurotransmission. They are created in neurons, travel down the axons, cross synapses, and continue carrying the signal to wherever the information needs to be. When sucrose is tasted, neurotransmitters are sent to the brain, telling the brain that there is a "sweet" flavor.
cAMP - cAMP, or cyclic adenosine monophoshate, is a second messenger used in signal transduction between cells. In this context, since the act is sensory, it is in reference to neurons. The chemical formula is C10H12N5O6P.
K+ Channel - A K+ channel is a potassium channel. It is the most common type of ion channel and is found in practically all living organisms. They allow the flow of K+ ions across the cell membrane, generating electric signals in cells. This makes them important in neurons, which are easily excitable and transport signals.
Ion - An ion is an atom that doesn't have a neutral charge. It can either have a positive charge (cation) or a negative charge (anion).
Synthesis Reaction - In a synthesis reaction, at least two reactants react together to create one product. Its general equation is: A + B > AB
Decomposition Reaction - In a decomposition reaction, one reactant reacts to create at least two products. Its general equation is: AB > A + B
Single Replacement Reaction - In a single replacement reaction, a cation replaces another cation, or an anion replaces another anion in the reactants. Its general equation is: A + BC > AC + B
Double Replacement Reaction - In a double replacement reaction, the cations switch places in the reactants. Its general equation is: AB + CD > AD + BC
Combustion Reaction - In a combustion reaction, a substance, typically a hydrocarbon, which is a substance consisting of hydrogen and carbon, reacts with oxygen and heat to create carbon dioxide and water. This is burning.
Minecraft - Minecraft is a Swedish sandbox video game released in 2011. It has sold 180 million copies since its release, making it the best-selling game in video game history. In Minecraft, cakes are food blocks that the player can consume. The Minecraft cake was the group's theme and inspiration.
Art of Making:
Sift - Sifting is the act of putting a powder through a sieve to remove lumps or large particles and to equally distribute the powder across the bowl. We sifted the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt when making the cake.
Gluten - Gluten is a substance typically found in cereal grains that is responsible for the elastic texture of dough. It is a mixture of two proteins and is created when flour reacts with water.
Coagulation - Coagulation is the action of a liquid changing to a solid or a semi-solid state. This phenomenon occurred when we cracked the eggs.
Sodium Bicarbonate - Sodium bicarbonate is a chemical compound with the formula NaHCO3. It is commonly known as baking soda. Baking powder consists of sodium bicarbonate and an acid, meaning that it only needs a liquid to activate, rather than baking soda needing both an acid and liquid to activate.
Art of Baking:
Carbon Dioxide - Carbon dioxide is a gaseous compound with the chemical formula CO2. It is created when the baking powder reacts with liquid and heat, creating the gas. This gas makes the cake rise in the oven.
Functional Group - A functional group is a specific grouping of atoms within molecules that give the molecule certain characteristics. A functional group will always undergo the same or similar chemical reaction no matter what kind of molecule it's part of.
Maillard Reaction - The Maillard reaction is a reaction in baking in which sugars and amino acids react with heat to create browning. This browning is the familiar color and odor baked goods have. An example would be the crust around baked bread. When the cake was placed in the oven, the sugars in the ingredients underwent this reaction.
The steps of the Maillard reaction are:
1. Reducing sugars and amino acids react with heat to create glycosylamine and water.
2. Glycosylamine undergoes Amadori rearrangement to create ketosamines.
3. Ketosamines further break down to create the brown color and odor associated in baked goods.
Caramelization - Caramelization is the oxidation of sugar via heat that also creates a brown color and odor. It is sometimes done with a blowtorch. Caramelization and the Maillard reaction are different because the Maillard reaction requires an amino acid, while caramelization doesn't.
Carbonyl - Carbonyl is one of the functional groups. It consists of a carbon atom double bonded to an oxygen atom. In the Maillard reaction, the carbonyl end of the sugar reacts with the amino acid in heat to create glycosylamine.
Glycosylamine - Glycosylamine is a biochemical compound consisting of a glycosyl molecule, which is a free radical (molecule with at least one unpaired electron), bonded to an amine functional group.
Amadori Rearrangement - Amadori rearrangement is an organic reaction in which a glycosylamine molecule rearranges itself into a ketose. The reaction is catalyzed by either an acid or base. The acid found in the baking powder helps cause this reaction to occur during the reaction.
Ketosamine - A ketosamine is a molecule comprised of a ketose and an amine. It is created as a result of Amadori rearrangement and it further breaks down to create the browning of the Maillard reaction.
Ketose - A ketose is a form of the ketone functional group. It is a monosaccharide (simple sugar) containing one ketone per molecule. It is part of the ketosamine.
Amine - An amine is a functional group derived from ammonia (NH3). It is found in both the glycosylamine and the ketosamine of the Maillard reaction.
Art of Decorating:
Electromagnetic Spectrum - The electromagnetic spectrum is the range of frequencies and wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation. The waves with the most energy and smallest wavelength are gamma waves, while the waves with the least energy and the largest wavelength are radio waves.
Visible Spectrum - The visible spectrum is a range of electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths stretching from 400 to 700 nanometers. This range consists of all the colors the human eye can see. The smallest wavelengths are the color violet and the largest wavelengths are the color red. The range, from largest wavelength to smallest wavelength, is red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet.
Primary Color - The primary colors are colors that cannot be created through mixture. They are colors that are used to create all the other colors. The primary colors are red, yellow, and blue.
Secondary Color - The secondary colors are colors created through the mixture of the primary colors. They are green, violet, and orange.
Tertiary Color - The tertiary colors are colors created through the mixture of primary and secondary colors. They are yellow-orange, red-orange, red-violet, blue-violet, blue-green, and yellow-green.
Color Theory - Color theory is a scientific and artistic theory pertaining to the usage of colors to create a desired effect. This theory is primarily used in design and art in order for things to have certain effects on viewers.
Color Scheme - A color scheme is a set of colors used together for design. Every color scheme has some sort of effect on the people that view the scheme.
Complementary Color Scheme - A complementary color scheme is a color scheme consisting of two colors across from each other on the color wheel. Examples include the schemes red and green and blue and orange.
Analogous Color Scheme - An analogous color scheme is a color scheme consisting of three colors side by side on the color wheel. An example is red, red-orange, and orange. In our cake, we used an analogous color scheme because we used red and brown, a shade of orange, together on a cake.
Triadic Color Scheme - A triadic color scheme is a color scheme that uses colors on the color wheel that form a triangle. These color schemes tend to be all the primary colors, all the secondary colors, or all the tertiary colors. An example is red, yellow, and blue.
Art of Tasting:
Saccharide - A saccharide is a sweet-tasting carbohydrate; it is a sugar. Monosaccharides, disaccharides, and polysaccharides consist of one sugar molecule, two sugar molecules, or more than two sugar molecules, respectively. In our cake, sucrose was abundant, which is a disaccharide.
Sucrose - Sucrose is a disaccharide consisting of glucose and fructose. It has the molecular formula of C12H22O11. Sucrose is just white sugar, so we used sucrose in our recipe.
Taste Buds - Taste buds are sensory organs found on the tongue used to perceive tastes. The five main tastes are sweet, salty, bitter, sour, and umami (savory). Fructose, because of its sweet flavor, activates the sweet taste buds.
Neurotransmitter - A neurotransmitter is a chemical used in neurotransmission. They are created in neurons, travel down the axons, cross synapses, and continue carrying the signal to wherever the information needs to be. When sucrose is tasted, neurotransmitters are sent to the brain, telling the brain that there is a "sweet" flavor.
cAMP - cAMP, or cyclic adenosine monophoshate, is a second messenger used in signal transduction between cells. In this context, since the act is sensory, it is in reference to neurons. The chemical formula is C10H12N5O6P.
K+ Channel - A K+ channel is a potassium channel. It is the most common type of ion channel and is found in practically all living organisms. They allow the flow of K+ ions across the cell membrane, generating electric signals in cells. This makes them important in neurons, which are easily excitable and transport signals.
Reflection
There is starting to be a pattern of unique and creative projects in my STEM career. The last project was PowerPrune with the fermentation of prunes to make a vitamin drink. This time, we created a Minecraft themed cake. This project was wildly different from the rest of the groups because the chemistry was much more complex and the project needed a lot of outside time to work. The actual theme was very creative and fun to work with, and the uniqueness added character to the overall product. Over the course of this project, I had multiple strengths and weaknesses. One of my strengths was the contribution to the presentation and analysis of the Maillard reaction. The presentation was a critical part of the project, and I pulled through and helped design the placard, create a playlist, and organize the general presentation. I had a very complex piece of chemistry to analyze: the Maillard reaction. I worked carefully and dissected the biochemistry of this reaction and successfully incorporated it into the presentation in a clean and coherent way. Furthermore, another strength was communication. Because this project took so much time, the group met outside of school twice to bake the cakes at my house. There was a lot of collaboration and critical thinking needed, and I contributed a lot to the coordination of ingredients, timing, and distribution of work.
With strengths comes weaknesses. I had some notable weaknesses during the course of this project. One weakness was my actual contribution to the creation of the cake. While I did measure ingredients and perform toothpick tests, I didn't do much work with the mixing or the rolling of the marzipan. I wanted to do more to bake the cake, but I didn't take the initiative to step in. Another weakness of mine was general distraction. The environment of the workspace made it a bit difficult to be a conscientious learner. Albeit the people present made the work time fun, it also made the work time distracting because we tended to tangent into topics not necessarily related to STEM and ended up watching movies and TV during intervals of rest instead of researching. I could've been more responsible in using my time efficiently, but I didn't.
Overall, the group was extremely efficient in baking the cakes, and I had a blast baking it. With the diverse group of people, there was a lot of cultural competency because people were able to work together to finish an ambitious product. I had a lot of fun working on this project and I can't wait for the next one!
With strengths comes weaknesses. I had some notable weaknesses during the course of this project. One weakness was my actual contribution to the creation of the cake. While I did measure ingredients and perform toothpick tests, I didn't do much work with the mixing or the rolling of the marzipan. I wanted to do more to bake the cake, but I didn't take the initiative to step in. Another weakness of mine was general distraction. The environment of the workspace made it a bit difficult to be a conscientious learner. Albeit the people present made the work time fun, it also made the work time distracting because we tended to tangent into topics not necessarily related to STEM and ended up watching movies and TV during intervals of rest instead of researching. I could've been more responsible in using my time efficiently, but I didn't.
Overall, the group was extremely efficient in baking the cakes, and I had a blast baking it. With the diverse group of people, there was a lot of cultural competency because people were able to work together to finish an ambitious product. I had a lot of fun working on this project and I can't wait for the next one!