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Jolly Boys

A fried dough made from sour milk, molasses, rye and cornmeal batter, cooked in deep fat.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
By Martin, Maria Ewing, Mrs., [from old catalog] comp · From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 5 ingredients
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Jolly Boys

Why it works: Milk and egg are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 18% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 88,785 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓

Jolly Boys

Ingredients

Directions

Make the batter

  1. Mix sour milk, beaten egg, molasses, soda, salt, rye meal, and corn meal.

  2. Add soda to the milk.

  3. Add molasses and rye meal until a thin batter forms.

  4. Add salt and cornmeal until a stiff batter forms.

  5. Add the beaten egg.

Fry and serve

  1. Drop by half tablespoons into deep boiling fat.

  2. Fry like doughnuts.

  3. Serve with a light hard sauce.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

285Calories
14 gProtein
13 gFat
28 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 4 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Sour Milk1 cup (244ml) whole149
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Molasses1 tbsp (20g)58
Salt1 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.

By Martin, Maria Ewing, Mrs., [from old catalog] comp. Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

  1. Milk + eggtop 18% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together88,785 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

  2. Milk + molassestop 21% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together7,243 recipes

    Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).

  3. Molasses + eggtop 34% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together6,879 recipes

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Sour milk
Its acidity reacts with the soda to produce gas that lightens the dough.
Soda (in the method)
Reacts with the acid in the sour milk, releasing carbon dioxide for rising.
Molasses
Adds sweetness, moisture, and dark color to the batter.
Egg
Binds the batter and adds structure as it cooks.
Cornmeal (in the method)
Stiffens the batter and gives the fried dough a firm, slightly grainy texture.
Rye meal (in the method)
Adds a earthy flavor and body to the thin batter.

The step that matters

Dropping the batter into deep boiling fat. The fat must be fully hot so the outside of each piece sets quickly. If the fat is too cool, the dough absorbs oil, turns greasy, and may cook unevenly inside.

“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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