Why it works: Flour and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 78,219 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Oatmeal Cakes
Ingredients
Directions
Make the oatmeal batter
Take a pint bowl of cold oatmeal mush.
Stir in half a cup of boiling water to moisten.
Add two eggs beaten very lightly.
Add cold milk enough to make a thin batter.
Add two tablespoonfuls of flour (to keep them from breaking).
Finish and bake
Bake on a griddle.
Combine one quart flour, two eggs beaten separately, one tablespoonful lard, one cup sugar, one teaspoonful salt, two tablespoons baking powder, and one cup sour milk, then beat well.
Bake in muffin rings immediately.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 5 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Sour Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Lard | 1 tbsp (12.8g) | 115 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 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.
-
Flour + milktop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Flour + eggtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Milk + eggtop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together88,785 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, 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
- Eggs
- Bind the batter and add structure as they set during baking.
- Flour
- Provides the main structure that holds the muffins together as they set.
- Sour milk
- Moistens the batter and its acidity reacts with the baking powder to aid rising.
- Lard
- Adds fat that tenderises the crumb and softens its texture.
- Baking powder (in the method)
- Releases gas in the wet batter, helping the muffins rise while baking.
- Oatmeal mush (in the method)
- Adds moisture and a hearty, cooked-grain texture to the batter.
The step that matters
Bake in muffin rings immediately. Baking powder starts releasing gas as soon as it gets wet and mixed with acid. Waiting before baking lets that gas escape, so the muffins may rise less.
“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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