Why it works: Sugar and molasses are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,225 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Ginger Cookies
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a moderate oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the dough
In a bowl, mix brown sugar, molasses, shortening, and boiling coffee.
Dissolve baking soda in the coffee mixture and add ginger.
Gradually add flour until a soft dough forms.
Shape and bake
Roll out the dough on a floured surface to ¼ inch thick.
Cut into desired shapes and place on buttered baking sheets.
Sprinkle with sugar and bake at 350°F (175°C) until done.
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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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.
-
Sugar + molassestop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,225 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
-
Molasses + gingertop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,116 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
-
Sugar + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
-
Ginger + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,564 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Molasses + flourtop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together10,429 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Brown sugar
- Adds sweetness and moisture, and helps the cookies brown and stay soft.
- Molasses
- Adds deep flavour, moisture and a chewy texture.
- Shortening
- Provides fat that tenderises the cookie and carries the spices.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the acidic molasses to lighten the dough and help it spread and brown.
- Flour
- Provides the structure that holds the cookies together as they bake.
The step that matters
Dissolve the baking soda in the coffee mixture. Baking soda needs to be fully dissolved and evenly mixed so it reacts with the acidic molasses throughout the dough. Clumps can leave bitter spots and uneven rising.
Swap the ginger
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, molasses, coffee, flour):
- Cinnamonfits better
- Jalapenofits about as well
- Nutmegfits about as well
- Gingerthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, molasses, coffee, 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.
More ginger cookies recipes
You might also like
Molasses Cookies96 recipes
Ginger Cake93 recipes
Coffee Ice Cream91 recipes
Molasses Cake90 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.