Aquafaba with chickpeas and whipped

Aquafaba Abra Cadabra!

aquafaba meringues

Aquafaba macarons made by our Bakery 350 Executive Pastry Chef Ian Farrell

To close out our plant-forward Earth Week with a little kid-friendly #TGIF, it’s time for some foods that are fun to make together. (Or alone: We can all use some fun right now, right?)

First, let’s talk about a magical liquid you may or may not have heard of: aquafaba. That’s the fancy name for the liquid that chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans) are cooked or canned in. Strain out the chickpeas, and you can whip this viscous mixture of protein and dissolved starch just like egg whites — and use it in any recipes that call for egg whites, from meringues, soufflés and angel food cakes, or just plain eggs as a binder. The Kitchn can tell you more, or just head straight to their recipe for Chickpea Blondies and Aquafaba Meringues, or the Loopy Whisk’s 3-Ingredient Vegan Chocolate Mousse with Aquafaba.

If this sounds like more work than you’re up for, try assembling some of these Backyard Bug Snacks instead, with whatever you have on hand!

Get a printable PDF

  • Vegetables: celery, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, beets
  • Fruits: strawberries, grapes, blueberries, apples
  • Spreads: hummus, cream cheese, seed butter, nut butter
  • Extras: olives, chocolate chips, chickpeas, pretzels

And while your junior Executive Chef is creating, impress them with fun facts about these tiny creatures that help us maintain the ecological balance required for sustainable and successful gardening:

  • A bee’s wings beat 190 times a second — that’s 11,400 times per minute!
  • Caterpillars have 12 eyes
  • Butterflies taste with their feet
  • Grasshoppers existed before dinosaurs
  • Ants can lift 100 times their weight
  • Honeybees have hair on their eyes
  • A slug has four noses
  • Dragonflies can fly up to 50 miles per hour
  • A snail can sleep for 3 years straight
  • Pill bugs, aka rollie pollies, are related to shrimp and breathe with their gills
  • There are over 480 different species of ladybugs in North America and over 6,000 worldwide

Find more eco-friendly actions for kids (and adults) during the pandemic, from the Earth Day folks.