Why it works: Flour and raisin match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,075 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Tea Biscuits II
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Butter a baking sheet, then dust with flour and keep it handy.
Make the batter
Beat eggs with sugar.
Add creamed butter and mix well.
Add flour, rum, and raisins and mix again.
Shape and bake
With a wet teaspoon, take a half-teaspoon of the mixture and place on the baking sheet, repeating until all batter is on the sheet.
Bake at medium heat. Do not overbake.
Remove biscuits from the sheet using a spatula.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 6 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Grape | 1/2 cup (76g) | 62 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Rum | 1/2 oz (15ml) | 32 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
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.
-
Flour + raisintop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together9,075 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Butter + rumtop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,007 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).
-
Sugar + raisintop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together12,481 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
-
Sugar + rumtop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,908 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Butter and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 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
- Eggs
- Bind the batter and add structure and richness as they set.
- Butter
- Adds fat for a tender, rich crumb and flavor.
- Confectioner's sugar
- Sweetens the batter and helps give a fine, tender texture.
- Flour
- Provides the structure that holds the biscuits together as they bake.
- Rum
- Adds aroma and a warm flavor note.
- Raisins
- Add sweetness and a chewy contrast to the biscuit.
The step that matters
Do not overbake. These small, thin biscuits have little mass, so they can dry out and harden quickly once their edges brown. Removing them as soon as they are set keeps them tender.
Swap the raisin
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, sugar, flour, egg, rum):
- Vanillafits better
- Raisinthe original
- Bananafits less well
- Pineapplefits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, sugar, flour, egg, rum. 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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