Why it works: Wheat and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,418 recipes. Both carry (e,z)-2,6-nonadienal, which smells cucumber, melon. The science ↓
Graham Muffins
Ingredients
Directions
Mix the batter
Combine one and a half pints of Graham flour with one-half pint wheat flour.
Take a pint cup three-fourths full of sour milk.
Add sour cream until full.
Add soda to sweeten.
Add a little molasses and a little salt.
Bake
Bake in the oven, having the oven hot before turning in the mixture.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 3 of 4 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 3 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Sour Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
| Wheat | 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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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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Wheat + milktop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,418 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,z)-2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, melon).
-
Flour + wheattop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,373 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Flour + milktop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Flour and milk 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
- Graham flour
- Forms the body of the muffins and gives them a coarse, hearty texture.
- Wheat flour
- Adds gluten for structure, helping the muffins hold their shape.
- Sour milk
- Its acidity reacts with soda to help the muffins rise and adds tenderness.
- Soda (in the method)
- Reacts with the acid in the sour milk to release gas that lifts the batter.
The step that matters
Heat the oven before adding the batter. Soda and sour milk start releasing gas as soon as they are mixed, and that lift fades if the batter waits. A hot oven sets the structure quickly so the muffins rise well and stay light.
“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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