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Dessert

Soft Ginger Bread

A moist gingerbread loaf made with molasses, ginger, spices, and baking soda.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 11 ingredients
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Soft Ginger Bread

Why it works: Cinnamon and clove 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 ↓

Soft Ginger Bread

Oven, in the book's wordsA moderate oven

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. The book gives no cooking times; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.

Prepare the batter

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).

  2. In a bowl, cream together the sugar and butter or lard.

  3. Stir in the molasses and egg until well combined.

  4. Dissolve the baking soda in the boiling water and add to the mixture.

  5. Add the ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice, mixing well.

  6. Gradually add the flour until a smooth batter forms.

Bake

  1. Pour the batter into a greased baking pan.

  2. Bake in the preheated oven for about 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

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.

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.

  1. Cinnamon + clovetop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together14,189 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).

  2. Clove + allspicetop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together7,874 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

  3. Cinnamon + allspicetop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together5,536 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

  4. Ginger + cinnamontop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together6,380 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

  5. Ginger + clovetop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together6,038 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Molasses
Adds dark color, moisture, and a deep sweet flavor to the gingerbread.
Baking soda
Reacts with the molasses and boiling water to produce gas that lifts the batter.
All-purpose flour
Provides the structure that sets as the batter bakes.
Butter or lard
Adds fat for tenderness and richness in the crumb.
Egg
Helps bind the batter and adds structure as it bakes.
Sugar
Adds sweetness and helps tenderize the crumb and browning.

The step that matters

Dissolving the baking soda in the boiling water. Baking soda needs an acid such as molasses to react and rise. Dissolving it fully in the hot water spreads it evenly, so the batter rises without pockets of soda or a bitter taste.

Swap the ginger

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, butter, molasses, egg, cinnamon, clove, allspice):

  1. Nutmegfits better
  2. Gingerthe original
  3. Cardamomfits about as well
  4. Thymefits less well

Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, butter, molasses, egg, cinnamon, clove, allspice. 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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