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Maryland Biscuit

A biscuit made with lard, cold water, soda, salt, Indian meal, rye flour, sour milk, and molasses, baked after steaming.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
By Jacqueline Harrison Smith (ed.) · From a historical cookbook (Project Gutenberg) · 8 ingredients
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Why it works: Rye and flour match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,320 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓

Maryland Biscuit

Ingredients

Directions

  1. Knead well.

  2. Beat for 10 minutes.

  3. Bake quickly.

  4. Mix the ingredients thoroughly.

  5. Steam for 2½ hours.

  6. Bake for 20 minutes to ½ hour, depending on oven heat.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

909Calories
24 gProtein
23 gFat
150 gCarbs

Counts 7 of 8 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 7 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Sour Milk1 cup (244ml) whole149
Lard1 tbsp (12.8g)115
Rye1 slice (32g)83
Molasses1 tbsp (20g)58
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Waternot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By Jacqueline Harrison Smith (ed.). 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. Rye + flourtop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,320 recipes

    Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

  2. Rye + milktop 12% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together918 recipes

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

  3. Flour + milktop 14% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together78,219 recipes

    Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

  4. Flour + molassestop 16% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together10,429 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

  5. Rye + molassestop 16% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together804 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

Flour and milk 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

Indian meal
Provides the main body and structure of the bread.
Rye flour
Adds structure and a denser, chewier crumb.
Sour milk
Its acidity reacts with the soda to help the bread rise.
Soda
Releases gas when it meets the acid in the sour milk, lightening the batter.
Molasses
Adds sweetness, moisture and a dark colour.
Lard
Adds fat, which tenderises the crumb and softens the texture.

The step that matters

Bake for 20 minutes to ½ hour, depending on oven heat. Oven temperatures vary, so the bake time must be judged by the oven in use. Too little time leaves the centre doughy, while too much dries the bread and makes the crumb crumbly.

“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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