Why it works: Butter and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and 81,283 recipes mention both. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
Parker House Rolls
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a hot oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the dough
Dissolve the yeast and sugar in lukewarm milk.
Add melted lard or butter and ½ pint of flour, then beat until smooth.
Cover and let rise in a warm place for about 1 hour, or until light.
Add salt and the remaining flour, or enough to make a soft dough.
Knead well.
Place in a greased bowl and cover.
Let rise in a warm place for about 1½ hours, or until doubled in bulk.
Shape the rolls
Roll the dough out to ½ inch thick.
Brush lightly with butter.
Cut with a biscuit cutter dipped in flour.
Crease through the center with the handle of a knife.
Fold over in a pocket-book shape.
Place in well-greased shallow pans, 1 inch apart, and cover.
Let rise until light, about 45 minutes.
Bake
Bake for 20 minutes in a hot oven at 400°F (200°C).
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 aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
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Butter + milktop 7% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Milk + flourtop 14% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + sugartop 15% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
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Butter + sugartop 17% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Butter and flour share little aroma chemistry, yet 124,287 recipes mention both: they likely 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
- Yeast cake
- Produces gas as it ferments, making the dough rise and become light.
- Milk
- Adds moisture and richness, and helps form a soft, tender dough.
- Purity flour
- Forms the gluten network that gives the dough its structure.
- Lard or butter
- Adds fat, which tenderizes the crumb and softens the texture.
- Sugar
- Feeds the yeast and adds sweetness and browning in the baked rolls.
The step that matters
Let the dough rise until doubled before shaping. Yeast gas expands the gluten network and makes the crumb light. Shaping under-risen dough gives dense rolls, while over-proofed dough can collapse and bake flat.
“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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