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 ↓
Geaham Muffins
Ingredients
Directions
Make the batter
Beat one egg with half a cup of sugar, a piece of butter the size of an egg, and one cup milk.
Mix the baking powder with Graham meal to make a batter thick enough to drop in rings without spreading.
Melt the butter and mix well with the sugar and egg.
Add the milk and gradually stir in the meal.
Beat one egg with one and a half cups of sour milk, one teaspoon saleratus, a little salt, two tablespoons melted lard or butter, and two tablespoons molasses.
Make the batter stiff enough to drop from a spoon.
Bake
Bake for fifteen minutes.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 8 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Sour Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Lard | 1 tbsp (12.8g) | 115 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Molasses | 1 tbsp (20g) | 58 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
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.
-
Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Milk + teatop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together738 recipes
Shared aroma: 4-heptenal (creamy, biscuit).
-
Molasses + sugartop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,225 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
-
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).
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 richness and structure as they set in the oven.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas when wet and heated, lifting the muffins as they bake.
- Saleratus
- Reacts with the acid in sour milk to release gas, helping the muffins rise and brown.
- Sour milk
- Its acidity activates the saleratus and gives a tender crumb with a slight tang.
- Lard
- Adds fat that keeps the muffins tender and moist.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness, moisture and a darker color to the crumb.
The step that matters
Make the batter stiff enough to drop from a spoon. A batter that is too thin spreads instead of holding its shape, and the muffins bake flat and dense. The meal and egg need enough body to set in a rounded form while the leavening lifts them.
“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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