Why it works: Sugar and molasses are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,225 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Marshm Allows
Ingredients
Directions
"Dainty Dishes."
Dissolve \ pound gum arabic in 1 nuart water ; add 1 pound best granulated sugar, and stir con=tantb' over a slow fire until about as thick as molasses. Add the stiffly beaten whites of 8
CANDIES. 207
eggs, flavor witli vanilla, and stir until it does not stick to the fingers. Pour into a pan dusted with cornstarch, and as it cools mark into squares. When taken out, dust all sides with cornstarch.
MOLASSES CAXDY, NO. 1.
Mrs. Kate Hoodlet.
Put 1 pound granulated sugar in a saucepan with just enough water to dissolve it, and boil until it reaches the hard ball ; add 1 quart N. O. molasses, 2 tablespoons vinegar, and 1 tablespoon butter; boil again till the hard ball is reached. Take it off, stir in a small J teaspoon soda, and pour into buttered tins ; as soon as it begins to cool, pull until white. Moisten the hands with ice water or butter. Lay out in long sticks, braids or twists, and as it hardens, cut into short lengths.
When taken from the stove flavor with the juice of 1 lemon.
MOLASSES CANDY, NO. 2.
Mrs. Edith W'incfordiicr.
Boil 1 cup molasses with 2 cups sugar, 1 tablespoon vinegar, a little butter and vanilla for I't miimtes. Pour out onto buttered plates. When cool enough, pull till light, and break into small pieces.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 5 of 6 ingredients. The other 1 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Molasses | 1 tbsp (20g) | 58 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Lemon | juice of 1 lemon (48ml) | 12 |
| Vinegar | 1 tbsp (15ml) distilled | 3 |
| 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.
-
Sugar + molassestop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,225 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
-
Sugar + vinegartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,806 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
-
Butter + lemontop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,227 recipes
Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
-
Sugar + buttertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
-
Sugar + lemontop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together53,532 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Sugar and lemon barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 53,532 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
Swap the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, vinegar, butter, molasses):
- Vanillafits better
- Figfits better
- Raisinfits better
- Lemonthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, vinegar, butter, molasses. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
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