Why it works: Clove and cinnamon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 14,189 recipes. Both carry ethyl cinnamate, which smells sweet, balsamic. The science ↓
Cheap Drop Cakes
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 batter
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
In a large bowl, mix together the molasses and water.
Add the flour, eggs, baking soda, and butter, and stir until combined.
Mix in the cloves, allspice, and cinnamon.
Bake
Drop spoonfuls of the batter onto a greased baking sheet.
Bake for 12-15 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.
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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Clove + cinnamontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together14,189 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
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Clove + allspicetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together7,874 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
-
Allspice + cinnamontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together5,536 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Flour + cinnamontop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together17,341 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Molasses + cinnamontop 11% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,928 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
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness, moisture and a deep caramel flavour to the batter.
- Flour
- Provides the structure that holds the cakes together as they bake.
- Eggs
- Bind the batter and help set the cakes as they bake.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the molasses's acidity to lift the batter and help it rise.
- Butter
- Adds fat for tenderness and richness in the finished cakes.
The step that matters
Baking until golden brown. Baking soda needs the acidic molasses to react and lift the batter, and the cakes need enough time to set through. Pulling them early leaves them doughy in the centre, while over-baking dries them out.
Swap the clove
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (molasses, flour, egg, butter, allspice, cinnamon):
- Nutmegfits better
- Clovethe original
- Cardamomfits less well
- Gingerfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against molasses, flour, egg, butter, allspice, cinnamon. 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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