Halloween was many weeks ago and my sister and I still have an insane amount of candy. My sister and I collected so much candy that it would last till July. Every piece would be rock hard and insanely stale, but we kept it and eventually ate every piece. After that year my mom was tired of having so much leftover candy so she had us donate about half of our stash to a local military base that would send it to soldiers on active duty. We split the remaining candy in half again. We ate half and we experimented on the rest. One of the most fun and simple experiments was the exploding peeps.
Peeps are internally sugar and come in all different artificial colors. They have such a high concentration of sugar that they have some unique properties. They are a mixture of corn syrup, gelatin, and sugar, which is a deadly combination for the health of your teeth. Nevertheless, they are delicious. Just like regular marshmallows, they will brown pretty quickly. They will also expand very quickly when heated from the inside out because of the water trapped in the sugar.
The Materials
1 Peep
Microwave safe plate
Microwave
The Experiment
Put the peep on a microwave-safe plate and microwave for 20-25 seconds.
Stand at the door of the microwave and watch peep. It will expand and you will start to smell a nutty warm sugar scent. If you start to smell burnt sugar then stop the microwave.
Be careful when you take the peep out of the microwave as the plate might be hot. The peep is not super fluffy, a little crispy, and will be warm.
The peep expands because the water molecules get excited when they are heated up. Normally they would just stay inside in the peep and maybe steam a little bit, but because the sugar in the peep is heated up and soft the water wants to escape. The bubbles will expand the peep and make it less squishy.
This experiment is very dependent on the microwave. You might try to heat it in the oven or on the stove. This won't work, or will not work well. This is because the microwave heats from the inside out. This means that the water in the peeps is heated before the outside and causes the peep to expand before letting the water out.
A microwave works to heat up your food by causing the molecules in your food to get excited and vibrate, which causes them to heat up. In a microwave, there is a main component called a magnetron that generates electromagnetic waves inside the microwave. These waves move back and forth through the microwave. The waves bounce off the walls of the microwave and eventually hit your food. These waves make the molecules in your food vibrate and heat food.
Microwaves are super cool and unlike many of the other heating devices in your kitchen. Peeps are also super cool because they are very unhealthy and, therefore, can behave in different ways.
Works Cited
Ganz, Stephanie. “Can You Microwave Peeps? Here's the Science Behind It.” The Kitchn, 17 March 2024, https://www.thekitchn.com/microwaving-peeps-23636012. Accessed 31 October 2024.
“How Do Microwaves Work to Cook Your Food?” Whirlpool, https://www.whirlpool.com/blog/kitchen/how-do-microwaves-work.html. Accessed 31 October 2024.
“Peep Science 101: The Magnificent Melting Microwave Peep.” Niantic Children's Museum, 28 March 2024, https://www.nianticchildrensmuseum.org/2024/03/peep-science-the-magnificent-melting-microwave-peep/. Accessed 31 October 2024.
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