Why it works: Flour and raisin match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,075 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Graham Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
Combine 2 coffee cupfuls molasses and 1 cupful butter.
Add 1 egg and 1/2 cupful sweet milk.
Add 2 teaspoonfuls soda and 1 1/2 cupfuls graham flour.
Add 1 small cupful raisins and spice to taste.
Mix well together, then steam for 3 hours. Good with any kind of sauce but best with sugar and cream.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 4 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Grape | 1/2 cup (76g) | 62 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
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 + raisintop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together9,075 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Milk + flourtop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Milk + raisintop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,155 recipes
Shared aroma: decanoic acid (acides aroma).
Milk and flour 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
- Graham flour
- Provides the bulk and structure of the pudding.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the molasses to produce gas that lightens the pudding.
- Molasses (in the method)
- Adds sweetness, dark colour and moisture.
- Butter (in the method)
- Adds fat for richness and a tender crumb.
- Sweet milk
- Adds moisture to hydrate the flour and form the batter.
The step that matters
Steam for 3 hours. Steam cooks the batter gently and evenly, keeping it moist. If the steam drops or the pot boils dry, the pudding can turn dense or scorched on the outside. Keep the steam steady throughout.
“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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