Why it works: Oats and molasses work together. They rank in the top 31% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 260 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Oatmeal Bread
Ingredients
Directions
Make the sponge
Combine three cups rolled oats, one teaspoon salt, one tablespoon lard, one-third cup molasses, two-thirds cup brown sugar, one cake yeast, and three cups boiling water.
Mix yeast with one cup of water.
Mix ingredients, then pour over three cups of boiling water.
Let cool.
Make and rise the dough
Add yeast.
Stir in enough white flour to make a stiff dough.
Let rise as with white bread.
Bake
Bake.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 5 of 7 ingredients. The other 2 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 5 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Oat | 1/2 cup dry (40g) | 154 |
| Lard | 1 tbsp (12.8g) | 115 |
| Molasses | 1 tbsp (20g) | 58 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
| Water | not in our table | 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.
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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Oats + molassestop 31% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together260 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Rolled oats
- Absorb liquid and add body, chewiness and a hearty texture to the loaf.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness, moisture and a deep color and flavor to the bread.
- Yeast
- Ferments the sugars and produces gas that makes the dough rise.
- White flour (in the method)
- Its gluten forms the structure that holds the stiff dough together and traps gas.
- Lard
- Adds fat that tenderizes the crumb and softens the texture.
- Brown sugar (in the method)
- Adds sweetness and food for the yeast, and contributes to browning.
The step that matters
Let cool before adding yeast. Yeast cells are killed by very hot liquids, so the mixture must cool before the yeast is added or the dough will not rise.
“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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