Why it works: Sugar and molasses are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,225 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Graham Bread
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a slow oven”. The 300°F (150°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the dough
Set a sponge of flour in the milk with the yeast.
When light, add hot water with dissolved baking soda.
Stir in molasses and as much Graham flour as possible without kneading.
Bake
Pour into well-greased pans.
Bake in a slow oven at 300°F (150°C) for half an hour.
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.
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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Sugar + molassestop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,225 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Milk + flourtop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Sugar + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
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Molasses + flourtop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together10,429 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Milk + sugartop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together77,875 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Milk and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 78,219 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
- Yeast
- Produces gas that makes the sponge rise and lightens the loaf.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the molasses's acidity to release gas, adding lift and darkening the crumb.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness, moisture and deep color and flavor.
- Graham flour
- Its bran and germ give the loaf a hearty texture and body.
- Milk
- Adds moisture and tenderness to the dough.
The step that matters
Add the baking soda when the sponge is light. The baking soda releases gas when it meets the acidic molasses and dough. Adding it once the yeast sponge has risen lets that gas lift the loaf as it sets. Adding it too early lets much of the gas escape, and the bread can come out dense.
“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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