DISCOVER Magazine. Science, Technology and The Future
Current Issue
Subscribe Today »
  • Renew
  • Give a Gift
  • Archives
  • Customer Service
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Newsletter
  • Health & Medicine
  • Mind & Brain
  • Technology
  • Space
  • Human Origins
  • Living World
  • Environment
  • Physics & Math
  • Video
  • Photos
  • Podcast
  • RSS
Discoblog
« NCBI ROFL: Christmas cheer: a gingerbread high?
Experts Baffled by Unidentified Black Goo Floating in Arctic Ocean »

How to Make Solar Chocolate Chip Cookies on Your Car Dashboard

cookiesTo conserve energy this summer, why not harness the insane amount of heat your car collects to—what else—bake cookies? Instead of warming up your oven (and your kitchen) on an already-too-hot day, it makes sense to use the heat that automobiles naturally store to finagle some freshly baked sweet treats.

The blog Baking Bites tried it out and found that standard-sized chocolate chip cookies took about two-and-a-half hours to bake in the writer’s car, which reached 180 degrees Fahrenheit (the temperature outside, meanwhile, topped 100 degrees).

“I think that they were best hot out of the car,” writes the blogger, who placed the cookies on a baking sheet on her car’s dashboard. The cookies never browned, but apparently they did smell and taste delicious. “They were slightly crisp at the edges and chewy in the center,” she writes.

Those of us without cars will just have to bake our cookies the old-fashioned way (or use someone else’s). Still, if you can manage it, car-baked cookies will also make your car interior smell pretty darn good.

Related Content:
Discoblog: Photo Finds Cookie With Human Personality
Discoblog: Move Over, Heroin: “Sugar Addiction” May Be a Reality
Discoblog: For Impulsive Eaters, Losing Weight Is a Guilt Trip Away

Image: flickr / foodistablog

Share

July 16th, 2009 11:13 AM Tags: cars, cookies, energy
by Allison Bond in Food, Nutrition, & More Food, Pollution Solutions (& Disasters), Technology Attacks! | 10 comments | RSS feed | Trackback >

  • Dewalt

    I tried it with a chicken but I got salmonella.

  • Amos Zeeberg (Discover Web Editor)

    A solar reflector [like the kind used for tanning or for collecting solar energy] would probably brown them and really cut down on cooking time.

  • Brian

    I’ve heard of cooking entrees on the engine block. This makes it a full meal (salad not needing any cooking time)!

  • Christina Viering

    Yummm.

  • http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/discoblog/2009/07/22/how-to-turn-a-papasan-chair-into-a-solar-cooker/ How To Turn a Papasan Chair Into a Solar Cooker | Discoblog | Discover Magazine

    [...] those cookies that were baked on the dashboard of a car? Well, now someone who’s extra-crafty has upped the ante by converting a papasan chair into a [...]

  • http://www.youtube.com/user/SunshineCooking SunshineCooking

    If you don’t have a car, you could try what we did. We used a glass bowl, glass chopping board, dark round pan, and a car sunshade to solar bake cookies.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JGlUQJ7fzk&feature=channel_page

  • http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/discoblog/2009/09/03/suits-revolting-bangladesh-pm-bans-suits-ties-to-conserve-energy/ Suits Revolting: Bangladesh PM Bans Suits, Ties to Conserve Energy | Discoblog | Discover Magazine

    [...] Content: Discoblog: How to Make Solar Chocolate Chip Cookies on Your Car Dashboard Discoblog: Running on Air: New Hybrid Does Without a Battery Discoblog: Is Googling Bad For the [...]

  • http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/discoblog/2009/09/15/fashion-grows-an-eco-conscience-airdye-debuts-at-fashion-week/ Fashion Grows an Eco-Conscience: Waterless Dye Debuts at Fashion Week | Discoblog | Discover Magazine

    [...] Content: Discoblog: New Jewelry Could Help Diabetics, Eliminate Syringes Discoblog: How to Make Solar Chocolate Chip Cookies on Your Car Dashboard Discoblog: Are “Climate Friendly” Food Labels a Terrible [...]

  • http://homebakingideas.vox.com/ Alaina Bliler

    A great idea for future recipes this. Thank you for sharing it. Have you noticed how so many people appear to be cooking again? I wonder if the lack of funds due to the current climate has something to do with it and we all appear to be cooking again! its great!

  • http://www.dashtrimkitstore.com Dash

    Wow! This is one of the coolest idea i’ve ever heard. Now i know what else could my goodlooking dashboard can do for me. Not only for making my car look gorgeous but also to serve me a good tasting cookies! Brilliant post!





    • About the Blog

      Discoblog is DISCOVER's compendium of quirky, funny, and surprising science news from the edge of the known universe. It's written by Veronique Greenwood and Valerie Ross. Email tips and suggestions to vgreenwood [at] discovermagazine [dot] com.

      Discoblog also includes the daily feature NCBI ROFL, in which two prone-to-distraction grad students post real scientific articles with funny subjects. Email your tips to ncbirofl [at] gmail.com. Follow the ROFL feed here.

    • Twitter

      Follow @discovermag
    • Facebook

    • Twidget

      Add Tweets
    • Archives

      Archives

      • February 2012
      • January 2012
      • December 2011
      • November 2011
      • October 2011
      • September 2011
      • August 2011
      • July 2011
      • June 2011
      • May 2011
      • April 2011
      • March 2011
      • February 2011
      • January 2011
      • December 2010
      • November 2010
      • October 2010
      • September 2010
      • August 2010
      • July 2010
      • June 2010
      • May 2010
      • April 2010
      • March 2010
      • February 2010
      • January 2010
      • December 2009
      • November 2009
      • October 2009
      • September 2009
      • August 2009
      • July 2009
      • June 2009
      • May 2009
      • April 2009
      • March 2009
      • February 2009
      • January 2009
      • December 2008
      • November 2008
      • October 2008
      • September 2008
      • August 2008
      • July 2008
      • June 2008
      • May 2008
      • April 2008
      • March 2008
      • February 2008
      • January 2008
      • December 2007
      • November 2007
      • October 2007
      • September 2007
      • August 2007
      • July 2007
      • June 2007
      • May 2007
      • April 2007
      • February 2007
      • January 2007
      • December 2006
      • November 2006
      • October 2006
      • September 2006


  • Kalmbach Publishing Co.

    Copyright © 2012, Kalmbach Publishing Co.

    Privacy - Terms - Reader Services - Subscribe Today - Advertise - About Us