Cooking experiences: Tasting different cheese characteristics with cheesy buns

Thursday 6th December 2018,

It’s hard to argue with the fact that all cheeses are delicious, but when it comes to melting, not all cheeses are created equal. Some melt into smooth, gooey deliciousness, while others turn greasy, grainy, or just stubbornly refuse to melt at all. What gives? Today we found out—and learnt which cheeses make for the best-baked buns in this easy experiment. (Bonus: delicious snack ahead!)

Cheese filled breakfast rolls are fun for children to make; they can spread softened butter onto bread buns, layer on the cheese of their choice, and pile on additions to make their own unique meal. For our meal prep we used: 

+ 14 wholegrain dinner rolls

+ Baby spinach leaves

+ Sweet paprika, for dusting (optional)

+ Mozzarella, bocconcini and Parmesan cheese 

First we invited our little chefs to arrange the slices of bread on a large platter. We cut the top third off the rolls and scooped out most of the bread. The children participated in the entire process. 

As far as additions go, we encouraged the children to experiment with adding what they prefer to their rolls. We gave our children small plastic knifes and encouraged them to line each roll with melted butter and spinach leaves. On top we added sprinkles of cheese and paprika.  

Cheese comes in numerous varieties of different styles, textures and flavours, but it’s all made from the same basic ingredient – milk. So what are the differences and how are they created? “Milk is from a cow…the cheese is from a cow.” Said Sophie as we presented the three types of cheeses and discussed how they differ, While there are many differences between Mozzarella and Cheddar cheese, we explained that the former comes from Italy, while the latter is said to have originated in England. We explained how mozzarella is a kind of cheese that is known for its soft and chewy texture. “You can put both on a pizza…It will melt” Said Finnley 

We then made a prediction; we asked “Do you think these three cheeses will melt the same way once they go in the oven? “It will melt like water. They turn into melted cheese.” Michael predicted.

How do these cheeses look different? Do they smell different? I wonder if they will taste the same? “It smells strong. It makes my hand smell! It’s yummy!” Said Charlie

We watched as the rolls were placed in the oven to bake until the rolls and cheese were golden. We watched through the oven light and peeked through the window in the oven door to watch the action!

What do you see? Are the cheeses all melting at the same time? Do they look different? How so? “It’s turning into water…going inside the bread.” Said Olivia

Once the buns were out we asked, do all 3 cheeses look the same? How do they look different? Which would you choose to put in your bun? Why? “They all melted because it was hot. The hot melt ice cream. The hot melt the cheese.” Said Sophie.

We finally got to enjoy our experiment by gobbling it al up! It’s fine to eat any (or all) of our creations! To punch up their flavour after our observations, we tried topping them with mushrooms and some shredded chicken.

So which cheeses are the best melters?

We noticed that drier cheeses like Parmesan didn’t melt as well because there is less water contained in the cheese. When it became hot the Parmesan couldn’t flow very well. We noticed that the mozzarella tasted strong and flavourful. It did melt but separated with greasy melted fat. The best melter was the bocconcini, which turned out gooey and the most watery. This was by far the most popular choice!  

We used adjectives to help the children describe what they were tasting with words such as soft, gooey, creamy, strong,  

In the future we may try melting other cheeses with Romano, Swiss and Colby cheeses and comparing flavours and using language to describe what we are tasting and sensing.