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Dessert

Soft Molasses Cookies

Cookies made with molasses, soda, sour milk, shortening, ginger, salt, and flour.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
By Fannie Merritt Farmer · From a historical cookbook (Project Gutenberg) · 7 ingredients
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Why it works: Molasses and ginger are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 4,116 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓

Soft Molasses Cookies

Ingredients

Directions

Make the dough

  1. Add soda to molasses and beat thoroughly.

  2. Add milk, shortening, ginger, salt, and flour.

  3. Use enough flour to make mixture of right consistency to drop easily from spoon.

  4. Let stand several hours in a cold place to thoroughly chill.

Shape and bake

  1. Toss one-half mixture at a time on slightly floured board and roll lightly to one-fourth inch thickness.

  2. Shape with a round cutter, first dipped in flour.

  3. Bake on a buttered sheet.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

815Calories
21 gProtein
21 gFat
135 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 7 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Sour Milk1 cup (244ml) whole149
Butter1 tbsp (14g)102
Molasses1 tbsp (20g)58
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Ginger1 tsp grated fresh (2g)2
Salt1 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.

By Fannie Merritt Farmer. Recipe from a historical cookbook (Project Gutenberg).

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.

  1. Molasses + gingertop 14% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together4,116 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

  2. Milk + flourtop 14% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together78,219 recipes

    Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

  3. Ginger + flourtop 15% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together8,564 recipes

    Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

  4. Molasses + flourtop 16% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together10,429 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

  5. Milk + gingertop 19% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together4,519 recipes

    Shared aroma: methyl 2-methylbutyrate (fruity, apple).

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

Molasses
Provides sweetness, moisture, and the dark color and deep flavor of the cookie.
Soda
Reacts with the acid in sour milk and molasses to release gas, helping the cookies rise.
Sour milk
Adds acidity that activates the soda and contributes moisture and tenderness.
Shortening
Adds fat that tenderizes the crumb and gives a soft, rich texture.
Ginger
Contributes the warm, spicy aroma that defines the cookie's flavor.
Flour
Builds the structure that holds the dough together and sets the final texture.

The step that matters

Chill the dough until thoroughly cold. The soft, sticky dough must firm up so it can be rolled and cut without tearing or absorbing excess flour. Chilling also solidifies the fat, which helps the cookies keep their shape in the oven.

Swap the ginger

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (molasses, milk, flour):

  1. Cinnamonfits better
  2. Jalapenofits better
  3. Nutmegfits better
  4. Gingerthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against molasses, milk, flour. 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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