The first day in the lab was spent testing out the juicer. I went home with a nice quantity of juice and a bunch of carrot pulp to experiment with.
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| Juicing carrots is messy, but satisfying! |
PROTOTYPES
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| What the f#@k is this? |
Cheetos
A play on Frito's crunchy cheese flavored snacks. I cut baby carrots into irregular shapes and rolled them in cheese powder (for the prototype I made cheese powder by pulverizing cheetos in a food processor). I was pleasantly surprised with the results which I considered to be a pretty convincing facsimile. This was a strong contender, but I wasn't sure it would stand out in a sea of carrots.
Sno-Cones
I used the juice made in the lab to make a granita at home. The process was surprisingly simple. I was actually intrigued by the shards of frozen carrot juice and considered pursuing using the shards in a seperate prototype however, I wasn't sure I could keep the product frozen long enough for presentation. The granita was tasty, but I felt the flavor was too potent for children. Also, because the granita melted so quickly, I thought it may be too messy (the melting carrot juice had the potential to stain hands, clothing, furniture, faces, etc.).
I used colorful carrots cut into x's and o's as game pieces for the classic game tic-tac-toe. This task required some intricate cutting, thankfully no injuries occurred when my knife "skills" were put to the test. The "game board" was drawn in ranch dressing. While I think this idea would actually go over pretty well with kids, many of my classmates also had a version of tic-tac-toe in their set of prototypes, so I decided to skip it.
Carrot Haystack & Sand
Haystacks - "Haystacks" were created through the mounding of finely grated golden yellow carrots. The flavors of the haystack was to be a spin on a traditional carrot raisin salad (citrus, carrot, raisin, sugar). However, instead of the raisins being incorporated throughout the salad (and to adhere to the 95% carrot restriction) one raisin formed into the shape of a mouse would be discovered in the center of the haystack. While I was a fan of this concept, no one else seemed too stoked about raisins, so I axed this idea.
Sand - For the prototype I simply ground cheetos in a food processor until they resembled a large grain sand. My intention was to represent what dehydrated and ground carrots might look like.
Gel in a Shell
This prototype was created by allowing jello to set in a hollowed halved orange. I used jello out of a box for the experiment. I was pleased with the aesthetic, but concerned over the bitter taste emitted from the pith.
Mashed potatoes and butter
For this prototype cooked carrots were mashed until they resembled carrots. I then cut a small square of golden yellow carrot which I placed on the top of the mash to resemble butter. I planned to use a butter extract to inject a concentrated buttery flavor, while staying within the 95% carrot guideline. This was one of my favorite concepts, but may be better suited as a dish for adults.
Carrot Shapes
The most uninspired of the lot, this prototype is pretty ho-hum. It's hard to come up with 10 ideas!
Bubble Tea
I didn't experiment with making bubble tea at this stage of the game. I knew it would involve a lot of juice, which I didn't have at home. And I wanted to wait to buy the tapioca pearls used in "boba" tea until I knew this idea was a go.
Carrot Toothpaste
My thought on this was that it would at least get the carrot into the kid's mouth. People were just too grossed out about this, so the idea was scrapped.
FINAL RESULTS
With help from Barry and some of my classmates I narrowed down my prototypes to three finalists. Drum roll please....
Carrot Sand
I just had to pursue this idea!!! I did a practice run with the dehydrating of carrots and discovered the ideal thickness of the carrot for this method and the proper time. The carrots were cut thinly on a mandoline and dried in the dehydrator for over 15 hrs. Because I tested the dehydrating prior to executing the final, I was aware of just how many carrots would be needed. An entire bag + 3-4 carrots resulted in about 3/4 cup of carrot "sand". I added approximately 2tsps ground dried coconut (the yummy stuff from Trader Joe's), a pinch of sugar, and a pinch of salt. To construct the castle, I added a tsp of butter to a portion of my sand and pressed the mixture into a castle mold acquired from amazon. I then froze the carrot sand castle overnight to insure its stability. Initially, I had planned to present the carrot sand on 12 individual blue plates with miniature shovels and pails, however after scouring the internet for such items I came up with no food safe, reasonably affordable options. In addition, I estimated I would need a LOT, I mean a TON of carrots to make enough sand for 12 servings. And then it occured to me - sand boxes are a communal space, why not make the experience of eating the carrot sand communal? Finding the sandbox "serving" vessel and castle mold sealed the deal! While I'm not sure the sand is successful as a stand alone dish, I think the potential for use as an ice cream topping, dredge, breading, etc. made it a seriously successful experiment.
Carrot "Bubble Tea" Purchasing the tapioca pearl bubbles gave me an excuse to go to one of my favorite shopping destinations - the Asian grocery - what a wonderland! The process of creating this was pretty straightforward although the cooking of the tapioca took a little finesse. After cooking the pearls I steeped them in a simple syrup infused with ginger juice. I was disappointed that the tapioca pearls absorbed next to none of the ginger flavor. To the 3 cups carrot juice I added a small quantity of lemon juice (1-2 tbsp) t in an attempt to "brighten" the flavor, although I think it could have used a bit more citrus. I discovered through this "product" how fond I am of carrot juice - wish I had a juicer at home!
Gel in a shell (carrot gelatin in an orange peel)
I didn't feel that the idea of presenting "jell-o" in an orange shell was that unique. However, I thought it would be hugely successful with children. The texture of gelatin is familiar to kids, plus slurping the gelatin from the peel would get them to interact with their food. As I mentioned in the prototype section, I was concerned about the bitter pithy flavor from the peel. Mike of La Bel Vie suggested I blanch the shell prior to removing the flesh. I'm not sure it was successful. I was left with a limp, still pithy shell. But it was worth a shot. I was shocked by the viscosity of the gelatin. In retrospect, there was a lot of carrot juice in the recipe. If I had it to do over again, I might substitute a portion of the carrot juice with water or orange juice (which I did use a small amount of).
This was an awesome experience!
Sand - For the prototype I simply ground cheetos in a food processor until they resembled a large grain sand. My intention was to represent what dehydrated and ground carrots might look like.
Gel in a Shell
This prototype was created by allowing jello to set in a hollowed halved orange. I used jello out of a box for the experiment. I was pleased with the aesthetic, but concerned over the bitter taste emitted from the pith.
Mashed potatoes and butter
For this prototype cooked carrots were mashed until they resembled carrots. I then cut a small square of golden yellow carrot which I placed on the top of the mash to resemble butter. I planned to use a butter extract to inject a concentrated buttery flavor, while staying within the 95% carrot guideline. This was one of my favorite concepts, but may be better suited as a dish for adults.
Carrot Shapes
The most uninspired of the lot, this prototype is pretty ho-hum. It's hard to come up with 10 ideas!
Bubble Tea
I didn't experiment with making bubble tea at this stage of the game. I knew it would involve a lot of juice, which I didn't have at home. And I wanted to wait to buy the tapioca pearls used in "boba" tea until I knew this idea was a go.
Carrot Toothpaste
My thought on this was that it would at least get the carrot into the kid's mouth. People were just too grossed out about this, so the idea was scrapped.
FINAL RESULTS
With help from Barry and some of my classmates I narrowed down my prototypes to three finalists. Drum roll please....
Carrot Sand
I just had to pursue this idea!!! I did a practice run with the dehydrating of carrots and discovered the ideal thickness of the carrot for this method and the proper time. The carrots were cut thinly on a mandoline and dried in the dehydrator for over 15 hrs. Because I tested the dehydrating prior to executing the final, I was aware of just how many carrots would be needed. An entire bag + 3-4 carrots resulted in about 3/4 cup of carrot "sand". I added approximately 2tsps ground dried coconut (the yummy stuff from Trader Joe's), a pinch of sugar, and a pinch of salt. To construct the castle, I added a tsp of butter to a portion of my sand and pressed the mixture into a castle mold acquired from amazon. I then froze the carrot sand castle overnight to insure its stability. Initially, I had planned to present the carrot sand on 12 individual blue plates with miniature shovels and pails, however after scouring the internet for such items I came up with no food safe, reasonably affordable options. In addition, I estimated I would need a LOT, I mean a TON of carrots to make enough sand for 12 servings. And then it occured to me - sand boxes are a communal space, why not make the experience of eating the carrot sand communal? Finding the sandbox "serving" vessel and castle mold sealed the deal! While I'm not sure the sand is successful as a stand alone dish, I think the potential for use as an ice cream topping, dredge, breading, etc. made it a seriously successful experiment.
Carrot "Bubble Tea" Purchasing the tapioca pearl bubbles gave me an excuse to go to one of my favorite shopping destinations - the Asian grocery - what a wonderland! The process of creating this was pretty straightforward although the cooking of the tapioca took a little finesse. After cooking the pearls I steeped them in a simple syrup infused with ginger juice. I was disappointed that the tapioca pearls absorbed next to none of the ginger flavor. To the 3 cups carrot juice I added a small quantity of lemon juice (1-2 tbsp) t in an attempt to "brighten" the flavor, although I think it could have used a bit more citrus. I discovered through this "product" how fond I am of carrot juice - wish I had a juicer at home!
Gel in a shell (carrot gelatin in an orange peel)
I didn't feel that the idea of presenting "jell-o" in an orange shell was that unique. However, I thought it would be hugely successful with children. The texture of gelatin is familiar to kids, plus slurping the gelatin from the peel would get them to interact with their food. As I mentioned in the prototype section, I was concerned about the bitter pithy flavor from the peel. Mike of La Bel Vie suggested I blanch the shell prior to removing the flesh. I'm not sure it was successful. I was left with a limp, still pithy shell. But it was worth a shot. I was shocked by the viscosity of the gelatin. In retrospect, there was a lot of carrot juice in the recipe. If I had it to do over again, I might substitute a portion of the carrot juice with water or orange juice (which I did use a small amount of).
This was an awesome experience!
