Why it works: Bread and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 27,232 recipes. Both carry delta-decalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓
Dropped Scones
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the batter
Put the flour in a basin and mix with the bread soda (previously ground fine), the castor sugar, and cream of tartar.
Add the buttermilk very gradually, beating all well with the back of a spoon.
Cook on the griddle
Have the hot griddle ready, rub a piece of butter or suet over it.
Drop spoonfuls of the mixture neatly onto the griddle.
When bubbles rise on the top of the scones, turn them and fry until a delicate brown.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 5 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Cream | 1 tbsp (15ml) heavy | 51 |
| 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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Bread + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together27,232 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
-
Buttermilk + flourtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,721 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Buttermilk + sugartop 9% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,973 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
-
Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Flour
- Forms the structure that holds the scones together as they cook.
- Buttermilk
- Moistens the flour and reacts with the bread soda to lighten the scones.
- Bread soda
- Reacts with the acidic buttermilk and cream of tartar to produce gas that makes the scones rise.
- Cream of tartar
- Provides acid that reacts with the bread soda to help the scones rise.
- Castor sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps the scones brown during frying.
The step that matters
Adding the buttermilk. Adding the buttermilk very gradually and beating gently keeps the batter smooth and evenly mixed. Adding it too quickly or overbeating can make the batter lumpy or tough, and the rising reaction with the bread soda works best when the batter is combined carefully.
“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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