Your parents always said not to play with your food, right? And you thought it was because they didn’t want you to make a mess when really they may have been afraid you’d become a scientist. See, cooking is all about chemical reactions – recipes are all science games! But we’re not going to ask you to make a pie and have a bake sale. Why do that when you can animate dried fruit? That’s right…you’re about to wake up the raisins. And the lentils!
Raisins may seem like nothing much to you, just dried out old grapes that your grandma gives you instead of something good for dessert. Also they sort of look like bugs and sometimes you bite into a cookie thinking you’re getting chocolate chips and then Wham! It’s an unwanted raisin sticking to your teeth instead of the tasty chocolate explosion you were hoping for. But get over your grudge against these buggy-looking fruits because they’re going to react in a very funny way to some soda.
You’ll get a can of lemon lime carbonated drink out of your refrigerator or pantry (it doesn’t have to be cold) and pour some in a cup. Then you’ll drop in a few raisins and watch the chemical reaction take place as those boring little sundried grapes start bobbing and wiggling away in their soda bath. Once you’ve tried it, you can use it to amaze your little brother and entertain your friends…and if your parents complain about the sticky soda mess, well, just tell them you’re learning about science. And you’ll continue the learning by looking to see if there are better dancers than the raisins in your kitchen!
