(05/07/26) BATON ROUGE, La. — Roll up your sleeves and head into the kitchen for a hands-on learning experience during the next Unlocking the Secrets of Food Science session on Friday, June 12, featuring the science behind homemade biscuits, butter and honey butter.

Hosted by the LSU AgCenter, this interactive program introduces youth and families to basic food science concepts through simple, familiar foods.

During the session, participants will learn how ingredients work together to create tender, flaky biscuits and how agitation turns cream into butter. The program will conclude with a demonstration and tasting of homemade honey butter, highlighting how flavor and texture can be customized safely at home.

This event will be held in collaboration with the AgCenter creamery and include a lesson on how to make homemade butter. Charles Boeneke, LSU AgCenter dairy science professional, will talk about the science behind butter making and how to infuse butter with honey.

“Biscuits and butter are foods many families recognize, which makes them the perfect tools for teaching food science,” said Shannon M. Coleman, associate professor and state extension specialist in food safety.

Coleman will be working with AgCenter consumer seafood safety specialist Evelyn Watts, and Ashley Gutierrez, assistant director of FOODii. Each will bring their unique food science experiences to the session.

This activity helps participants understand the ‘why’ behind cooking while building practical skills and confidence in the kitchen.

Coleman said the biscuit and butter event will include:

• Expert insights: Learn the science behind biscuit making, including how fat, flour and leavening agents work together to create a light, flaky texture. Participants will explore why cold ingredients matter, how mixing affects gluten development and how heat transforms dough during baking. The session will also cover how cream is turned into butter and how to make delicious, flavored butters.
  
• Hands-on experience: Participate in hands-on activities that allow you to make homemade biscuits, churn butter and prepare honey butter from scratch.
  
• Innovative techniques: Discover simple, science-backed techniques that can be used in your home kitchen to improve texture, flavor and consistency when baking biscuits and making butter.
  

In addition to food preparation, the session emphasizes safe food handling practices, measurement skills and the role of science in everyday cooking.

The Unlocking the Secrets of Food Science series is designed to spark curiosity, encourage exploration and connect science concepts to real-world applications as part of the AgCenter’s ongoing efforts to promote adult and youth engagement in science, nutrition and food safety through experiential learning.

Coleman said they plan to offer the series every other month. Future topics include hot cocoa and churros and more.

Space is limited and registration is required. The cost to attend is $60, and each participant will leave with their own batch of biscuits, butter and honey butter.

Register at https://tinyurl.com/49r278mf or contact Ashley Gutierrez at AGutierrez@agcenter.lsu.edu for more information.

Also visit, https://tinyurl.com/ftunn9v2 for more information about upcoming Unlocking the Secrets of Food Science events.