You stick cookie dough into an oven, and magically, you get a plate of warm, gooey cookies. Except it's not magic; it's science. Stephanie Warren explains via basic chemistry principles how the dough spreads out, at what temperature we can kill salmonella, and why that intoxicating smell wafting from your oven indicates that the cookies are ready for eating. [Directed by Augenblick Studios, narrated by Addison Anderson].

Stephanie Warren: The chemistry of cookies

The chemistry of cookies

At 92°F, butter in cookie dough melts, triggering spreading. This phase symbolizes the transformative power of heat in baking.

Salmonella lurking in eggs dies at 136°F during baking. A subtle reminder of the unseen dangers in our kitchens neutralized by science.

Maillard reactions at 310°F imbue cookies with their golden hue and complex flavors, illustrating chemistry's role in culinary art.