The deadline for submission has now passed, however the recipe is still very much valid, bake away! Go straight to the ingredients list and recipe.
ESA invites all bakers to try out a special banana bread recipe that contains the main chemical elements found on the Moon. The social media challenge kicks off on 17 May, inspired by World Baking Day.
While banana and chocolate will add in the magnesium, oats will stick on some silica and iron, with the baking powder bringing up the oxygen. Yoghurt and almonds will transport us to the calcium on the Moon.
Moon bread chemical elements. Credits: ESA–K. Oldenburg
Bakers of all ages are invited to share their results with pictures or videos on social media. The deadline for pastry chefs to submit their cakes is 24 May.
The three best entries will receive a lunar prize from the ESA Space Shop. Since the jury won’t be able to taste the lunar creations, we will rate other aspects such as presentation, creativity and recipe variations with a link to the next mission to the Moon.
ESA Bakes
Space is certainly a cold place, but spacecraft have to face extremely high temperatures when they are exposed to the Sun’s radiation. The European Space Agency has a wide expertise in cooking spacecraft and comets, as well as exploring piping hot planets like Venus.
Temperature control is vital to keep astronauts warm. The European Service Module is the powerhouse that fuels and propels the Orion capsule beyond the Moon and back. The first Artemis uncrewed flight will take place later this year to test everything needed to keep astronauts alive in the upcoming missions, including water, oxygen, power and temperature sensors.
ESA spacecraft and instruments often feel the heat of strict sterilisation protocols to prevent microbial lifeforms hitching a ride on missions to other planets and moons in our Solar System. Planetary protection measures ensure that we do not bring back anything harmful from other worlds and that we don’t contaminate other planets.
A Moon bread recipe challenge
Are you hungry yet? Gather your ingredients and join the challenge.
Do not miss the Great ESA Mission Control Bake Off and more on ESA Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook accounts.
Depending on the platform you use, the recipe for success is different. If you join on Twitter, use the hashtag #ESABakes, send a direct message on Facebook and Instagram, share your creation under our ideas pin on Pinterest.
Moon bread recipe. Credits: ESA–K. Oldenburg
INGREDIENTS
- 3 bananas
- 2 eggs
- 1 yoghurt (125 ml)
- 80 g flour
- 30 g oat or plain flour [tip: you can make your own oat flour just by blending regular porridge oats]
- 40 g almond powder
- 100 g chocolate chips
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 pinch of salt
- 1 handful of nuts
METHOD
- Preheat oven to 180 °C
- Mash 2.5 bananas and add the eggs. Reserve half a banana for later.
- Add the yoghurt, maple syrup and vanilla extract and continue beating.
- Mix the flour, almond powder, baking powder and salt.
- Add to egg mixture and beat until smooth.
- Add the chocolate chips and nuts.
- Pour the mixture into an ovenproof tin, ideally a round one like the Moon, and place slices of the remaining half of a banana on top.
- Bake for about 30 minutes at 180 °C.
*Recipe courtesy of science outreach group @sensastro31.
Terms and Conditions
Please check our Terms and Conditions before joining the Moon Bread social media challenge.
A condition of being featured as a winner is that the entrant declares their consent in writing, in accordance with the privacy notice of this contest. Please also see ESA’s privacy notice for social media.
If you win any prizes, we will connect with you via private message so we can make arrangements for your prize. You *must* declare that you agree with our privacy notice before providing your personal details and receiving any prizes.