Make A Secret Marshmallow Message

If you’ve ever toasted a slice of bread or a marshmallow, you’ve noticed delicious aromas wafting from the food as it turns slightly brown in color. And when you pop one of those toasted morsels in your mouth, you taste a yummy flavor.

How do foods like these become browner and tastier as they toast?

The answer is through a chemical process called the Maillard reaction (pronounced may-ARD). Named after Louis-Camille Maillard, the French chemist who described the phenomenon, the Maillard reaction is actually a series of chemical reactions between sugars and proteins that occur when food is heated.

The Maillard reaction isn’t the only way that food can turn brown. Perhaps you’ve burnt pizza crust in the oven, or noticed an apple slice get darker over time; in both cases, other chemical reactions are involved. But where cooking and baking are concerned, the Maillard reaction is particularly important because it produces distinctive, appetizing aromas and flavors in food that accompany the browning.

With a little chemistry, you can control where and when that toasty color appears by creating a hidden message on a marshmallow.

Here’s how: See full story: https://www.sciencefriday.com/educational-resources/secret-marshmallow-message/