Why it works: Flour and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 92,116 recipes. Both carry phenylacetaldehyde, which smells hawthorne, honey. The science ↓
Graham Bread
Ingredients
Directions
Mix and rise
Combine 2 cups graham flour and 1 cup white flour.
Scald the mixture with water, then mix with water to a stiff dough like a cake batter.
Add a yeast cake.
Let the dough rise overnight.
Shape and bake
In the morning, add 1/2 cup sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, and a very little soda; if the dough seems sticky, add more flour.
Put the dough in tins and bake until light.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 3 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| 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.
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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Flour + sugartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Graham flour
- Provides the main structure and a coarse, nutty texture, with bran that absorbs water slowly.
- White flour
- Adds gluten for structure, so the loaf holds its shape and rises more evenly.
- Yeast cake (in the method)
- Produces carbon dioxide as it ferments, which leavens the dough and makes it rise.
- Sugar
- Feeds the yeast and adds sweetness and some browning to the crust.
- Baking soda (in the method)
- Reacts with acid in the dough to release gas, adding a little extra lift.
The step that matters
Adding flour in the morning. Graham flour's bran absorbs water slowly, so the dough can seem sticky after rising. Adding flour in small amounts keeps the crumb tender, since too much flour makes bread dense and dry.
“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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