Why it works: Ginger and cinnamon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 6,380 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓
Ginger Cookies
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the dough
In a saucepan, heat the shortening until boiling.
Add molasses, brown sugar, ginger, cinnamon, and baking soda; mix well.
Remove from heat and beat in the eggs.
Gradually add flour until a stiff dough forms.
Shape and bake
Roll out the dough and cut into shapes.
Bake on buttered baking sheets in a 400°F (200°C) oven until golden.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
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Ginger + cinnamontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together6,380 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Cinnamon + flourtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together17,341 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Sugar + cinnamontop 10% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together30,779 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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Molasses + sugartop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,225 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Molasses + cinnamontop 11% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,928 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Sugar and cinnamon barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 30,779 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Shortening
- Provides fat that gives the cookies a tender, rich crumb.
- Molasses
- Adds dark color, moisture and the characteristic deep, sweet flavor.
- Brown sugar
- Adds sweetness and moisture, helping the cookies brown and stay soft.
- Eggs
- Bind the dough and add structure as the cookies set.
- All-purpose flour
- Forms the gluten network that gives the dough its structure and shape.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the acidic molasses to aid rising and browning.
The step that matters
Gradually add flour until a stiff dough forms. Adding flour in portions lets you judge the dough's texture and avoid overworking it. Too much flour or too much mixing makes the cookies dense and tough.
Swap the ginger
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beef, molasses, sugar, cinnamon, egg, flour):
- Nutmegfits better
- Allspicefits about as well
- Cardamomfits about as well
- Gingerthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against beef, molasses, sugar, cinnamon, egg, flour. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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