Why it works: Milk and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 81,283 recipes. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
English Muffins
Ingredients
Directions
Make the batter
Beat two eggs very light.
Add one teaspoon of salt.
Add two tablespoonfuls of softened butter.
Add one tablespoon of sugar.
Add one cup of warm milk.
Dissolve one-half yeast cake in one-half cup of warm water.
Stir in enough flour to make a stiff batter.
Beat thoroughly and let stand overnight in a cool place.
Bake
In the morning beat thoroughly again.
Turn into well-buttered muffin pans.
Let rise slowly for one hour.
Bake about twenty minutes.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 6 of 7 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 6 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
| Cake | not in our table | 0 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
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. See the original page.
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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Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Egg + buttertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
-
Sugar + buttertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
-
Milk + eggtop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together88,785 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Sugar + milktop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together77,875 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Sugar and milk barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 77,875 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
- Add structure and richness to the batter as they set during baking.
- Yeast
- Produces gas during the long rest, making the batter light and airy.
- Flour (in the method)
- Forms the gluten network that holds the risen batter's shape.
- Butter
- Adds fat for tenderness and a softer crumb.
- Milk
- Adds moisture and helps give the batter a soft texture.
- Sugar
- Feeds the yeast and adds a little sweetness and browning.
The step that matters
Letting the batter rise slowly. Yeast needs time and a cool, steady environment to ferment gradually. Rushing or overheating the rise can produce coarse texture and uneven holes, while a slow rise builds a finer, more even crumb.
“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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