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 Snaps
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 the dough
Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C).
In a large bowl, cream together the lard, butter, and sugar until smooth.
Stir in the molasses and egg until well combined.
Add the ginger and baking soda, mixing thoroughly.
Gradually add flour until the dough is firm enough to roll.
Shape and bake
Roll out the dough on a floured surface and cut into desired shapes.
Place the cookies on a baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes.
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.
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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Sugar + molassestop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,225 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Molasses + gingertop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,116 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Sugar + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
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Ginger + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,564 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Butter and flour 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
- Lard
- Creates a tender, crumbly texture by shortening the dough's structure.
- Butter
- Adds flavour and richness, and helps the cookies brown.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the dough and helps it brown and spread during baking.
- Molasses
- Adds moisture, deep sweetness and the characteristic dark colour of ginger snaps.
- Egg
- Binds the dough together and adds structure as it sets.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the acidic molasses to lift and spread the cookies as they bake.
The step that matters
Gradually add flour until the dough is firm enough to roll. Adding too much flour makes the cookies dry and tough, while too little leaves the dough sticky and hard to shape. Adding it gradually lets you stop once the dough holds its shape.
Swap the ginger
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, sugar, molasses, egg, flour):
- Cinnamonfits better
- Nutmegfits better
- Jalapenofits about as well
- Gingerthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, sugar, molasses, egg, 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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