Name: Icelandic Three-grain Brown Bread
Ingredients: 4 Teaspoon Baking Soda; 1 Cup Dark Rye Flour; 2 Cup All Purpose Flour; 1 Teaspoon Salt; 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar, Packed; 2 1/2 Cup Buttermilk; 2 Cup Whole Wheat Flour; 1 Cup Rolled Oats; 1/2 Cup Butter, Softened

Why it works: Rye and wheat match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 404 recipes. Both carry coumarin, which smells sweet, hay. The science ↓

Icelandic Three-grain Brown Bread

Oven350F

Time1 hour

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

Preheat the oven to 350F.
Grease two 9x5x3 inch loaf pans.

Make the batter

In a large bowl, cream together the brown sugar and butter.
Mix the rolled oats, rye flour, whole wheat flour, all purpose flour, salt, and baking soda together in another bowl.
Add the creamed mixture along with the buttermilk and mix until well blended.
Divide the mixture between the two pans and smooth the tops.

Bake and cool

Bake 1 hour or until a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
Turn out of pans and cool on racks.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

992Calories

29 gProtein

24 gFat

162 gCarbs

What these numbers assume: 7 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Oat	1/2 cup dry (40g)	154
Milk	1 cup (244ml) whole	149
Butter	1 tbsp (14g)	102
Rye	1 slice (32g)	83
Sugar	1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated	49
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

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.

Rye + wheattop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together404 recipes

Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
Wheat + oatstop 6% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together473 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-octenal (fatty, green).
Rye + oatstop 6% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together69 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
Rye + flourtop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together1,320 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Flour + buttermilktop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,721 recipes

Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Baking soda: Reacts with the buttermilk's acidity to produce gas that lifts the loaf.
Buttermilk: Adds moisture and acidity that activates the baking soda and tenderizes the crumb.
Butter: Creamed with sugar, it adds fat that softens the crumb and carries flavor.
Brown sugar: Adds sweetness and moisture to the crumb.
All purpose flour: Provides gluten structure so the loaf holds its shape while rising.
Rolled oats: Add a hearty, chewy texture to the crumb.

The step that matters

Test for doneness with a skewer. The center can look set while still being wet and gummy. A skewer inserted in the middle should come out clean, showing the starch and egg-free batter have fully baked through; pulling the loaf early leaves a dense, damp interior.

“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.

Wheat Bread65 recipes

Whole Wheat Bread55 recipes

Barley Wheat Bread6 recipes

Cornbread345 recipes

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Icelandic Three-grain Brown Bread