Why it works: Almond and flour are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 8,673 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Spritzgeback
4–6 dozen cookiesIngredients
Directions
Make the dough
Beat butter and sugar until light.
Beat in egg, egg yolk and extract.
Sift flour, salt, and baking powder together; gradually add flour mixture to eggs.
Chill dough for ½ hour.
Shape and bake
Press ¼ of the dough into a cookie press.
Keep remaining dough chilled.
Shape cookies onto a greased baking sheet.
Bake in oven at 400°F for 7–10 minutes or until done.
Cool on wire racks and store in airtight tins.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 8 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Vanilla | 1 tsp extract (4ml) | 12 |
| Lemon | juice of 1 lemon (48ml) | 12 |
| Almond | 1 almond (1.2g) | 7 |
| 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.
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.
-
Almond + flourtop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,673 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Butter + almondtop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,245 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-pentanedione (butter, sweet).
-
Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Sugar + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
-
Egg + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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
- Butter
- Provides fat that creams with sugar to trap air and give a tender, rich texture.
- Eggs
- Add structure and richness, binding the dough while contributing moisture and color.
- Unbleached flour
- Forms the gluten network that gives the cookies their shape and firm, crisp structure.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas during baking, lifting the cookies so they are light rather than dense.
- Confectioners' sugar
- Sweetens the dough and, creamed with butter, helps create a fine, tender crumb.
The step that matters
Keeping the remaining dough chilled. Cold dough holds its shape in the cookie press. If it warms and softens, the butter melts and the cookies spread and lose their defined pattern.
“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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