Why it works: Milk and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 81,283 recipes. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
Flannel Cakes
Ingredients
Directions
Make the batter
Heat a pint of sweet milk.
Add two heaping teaspoonfuls of butter and let it melt.
Add a pint of cold milk.
Add the well-beaten yolks of four eggs.
Add a little salt.
Add four tablespoonfuls of potato yeast.
Add sufficient flour to make a stiff batter.
Set in a warm place to rise.
Let it stand three or four hours or over night.
Finish and cook
Add the whites beaten to a stiff froth just before you bake.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 6 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Potato | 1 medium (173g) baked | 161 |
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| 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.
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.
-
Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Potato + milktop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,611 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,z)-2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, melon).
-
Potato + buttertop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,456 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
-
Milk + eggtop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together88,785 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Potato yeast
- Ferments the batter so it rises and becomes light and airy.
- Eggs
- Yolks enrich the batter; beaten whites add lift and a light, tender crumb.
- Flour (in the method)
- Forms the structure that holds the risen batter together as it cooks.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richness and a tender texture.
- Milk
- Provides the liquid that hydrates the flour and makes the batter pourable.
The step that matters
Folding in the beaten whites just before baking. Beaten egg whites trap air that gives lift. If they are added too early or deflated by vigorous stirring, the air escapes and the cakes come out dense and flat.
Swap the potato
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, butter, egg):
- Potatothe original
- Asparagusfits about as well
- Chivefits less well
- Leekfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against milk, butter, egg. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“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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