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 ↓
Fruit Loaf
Ingredients
Directions
Make the syrup
Combine two cups sugar, 1/4 cup milk, and one tablespoon butter.
Boil until it forms a soft ball in water.
Make the loaf
Add one pound seeded dates and one cup finely chopped nuts to the syrup.
Cook until the dates are melted.
Pour into a damp cloth and knead into a loaf.
When cold, slice thin.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Oat | 1/2 cup dry (40g) | 154 |
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Rose | not in our table | 0 |
| Water | 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).
-
Butter + oatstop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,939 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
-
Milk + oatstop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,119 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3,5-trimethylpyrazine (cocoa, roasted).
-
Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
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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
- Sugar
- Sweetens the loaf and, when boiled, forms the syrup that sets the mass.
- Dates (in the method)
- Provide the bulk, sweetness and body of the loaf as they melt into the syrup.
- Butter
- Adds fat for a softer texture and richer flavor in the syrup.
The step that matters
Boil until it forms a soft ball in water. Sugar syrup sets as it cools based on how far it has been concentrated. Stopping too early leaves the loaf too soft to hold its shape, while boiling too long makes it hard and brittle once cold.
“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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