Name: Recipe for Bran Muffins
Ingredients: 1 quart bran; 2 eggs, beaten light; 1 pint whole wheat flour; Pinch of salt; ½ cup black molasses; 1 pint milk; 1 teaspoon baking soda; 3 teaspoons baking powder (if using sweet milk); 1½ teaspoons baking soda and 1 teaspoon baking powder (if using sour milk)

Why it works: Wheat and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,418 recipes. Both carry (e,z)-2,6-nonadienal, which smells cucumber, melon. The science ↓

Recipe for Bran Muffins

Oven, in the book's wordsA moderate oven

Ingredients

Directions

The book says “a moderate oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.

Prepare the batter

Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
In a large bowl, mix the bran, beaten eggs, whole wheat flour, and salt.
Add the black molasses and milk, mixing well.
If using sweet milk, add 3 teaspoons of baking powder and 1 teaspoon of baking soda.
If using sour milk, add 1½ teaspoons of baking soda and 1 teaspoon of baking powder.
Mix until combined, then pour into greased muffin pans.

Bake

Bake for about 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

Wheat + milktop 6% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,418 recipes

Shared aroma: (e,z)-2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, melon).
Wheat + flourtop 12% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together4,373 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Flour + milktop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together78,219 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Egg + flourtop 15% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together106,462 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Flour + molassestop 16% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together10,429 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

Bran: Adds fibre-rich bulk and a hearty, coarse texture to the muffin crumb.
Eggs: Bind the batter and add structure as the muffins set in the oven.
Whole wheat flour: Provides the main structure of the muffin, with a nutty, earthy flavour.
Black molasses: Adds moisture, deep sweetness, and a dark colour that contributes to browning.
Baking soda: Reacts with the acid in sour milk or with the other leavener to make the muffins rise.
Baking powder: Releases gas in the batter to lift the muffins as they bake.

The step that matters

Choose the right leavener for your milk. Sweet milk needs baking powder with a little baking soda, while sour milk's acid needs more baking soda to react. Using the wrong combination can leave the muffins flat, dense, or with a soapy taste.

“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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Wheat Muffins48 recipes

Whole Wheat Muffins12 recipes

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Recipe for Bran Muffins