Why it works: Butter and milk 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 ↓
Rye Muffins
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point. The book gives no cooking times either; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.
Prepare
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
In a large bowl, mix the rye flour, all-purpose flour, cream of tartar, and baking soda.
In another bowl, beat the egg and combine it with the melted butter, molasses, and sweet milk.
Mix and bake
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
Spoon the batter into muffin tins and bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.
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.
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Butter + milktop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Rye + flourtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together1,320 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Flour + buttertop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Rye + milktop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together918 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl 2-methylbutyrate (fruity, apple).
Flour and butter barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 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
- Rye flour
- Provides the main structure and a dense, hearty crumb with a distinctive flavor.
- All-purpose flour
- Adds gluten-forming structure so the muffins hold their shape with a lighter texture.
- Egg
- Binds the batter and adds structure and richness as it sets in the oven.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness, moisture, and a deep flavor, and helps the muffins brown.
- Cream of tartar
- Acts with baking soda to create carbon dioxide, helping the muffins rise.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the acidic molasses and cream of tartar to leaven the batter.
The step that matters
Mix the wet and dry ingredients just until combined. Once liquid meets flour, gluten begins to develop; overmixing creates tough muffins. Stopping when no dry streaks remain keeps the texture tender, and the leavening reaction starts as soon as the batter is combined, so it should go into the tins promptly.
“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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