Why it works: Ginger and clove match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 6,038 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓
Ginger Cookies
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point.
Make the dough
In a large bowl, mix together molasses, sugar, butter (or drippings), eggs, and vinegar.
Add baking soda, ginger, and cloves; mix well.
Shape and bake
Roll the dough out thin on a floured surface.
Cut into desired shapes and place on a baking sheet.
Bake in a hot oven at 400°F (200°C) until golden.
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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Ginger + clovetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together6,038 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Molasses + sugartop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,225 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Molasses + clovetop 13% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,483 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Molasses + gingertop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,116 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Sugar + vinegartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,806 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Molasses
- Adds deep sweetness, dark color, and moisture to the dough.
- Butter or drippings
- Adds fat for tenderness and rich flavor.
- Eggs
- Bind the dough and add structure as they set.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the acid in the dough to lift it and encourage browning.
- Vinegar
- Provides acidity that activates the baking soda.
The step that matters
Baking the cookies until golden. Baking soda and acid react to lift the dough, and sugar and molasses brown quickly, so cookies can over-darken or dry out if left too long in a hot oven.
Swap the clove
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (molasses, sugar, butter, egg, vinegar, ginger):
- Cinnamonfits better
- Allspicefits about as well
- Clovethe original
- Nutmegfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against molasses, sugar, butter, egg, vinegar, ginger. 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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