Why it works: Molasses and flour are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 16% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 10,429 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Squash Bread
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.
Make the dough
Combine the sifted squash, lard, molasses, baking soda, and salt in a bowl.
Add flour gradually until the mixture is stiff enough to knead.
Knead the dough and let it rise for 24 hours.
Bake
Bake in cakes or pans at 350°F (175°C) until done, similar to gingerbread.
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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Molasses + flourtop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together10,429 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
- Squash
- Adds moisture and body, keeping the bread tender and moist.
- Lard
- Adds fat, which tenderises the crumb and carries flavour.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness and dark colour, and helps the crust brown.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the molasses's acidity to produce gas that lifts the dough.
- Flour
- Provides gluten and structure so the dough holds its shape when kneaded and baked.
The step that matters
Letting the dough rise for 24 hours. The long rise lets yeast or chemical leavening develop gas and flavour gradually. Too short a rise leaves the bread dense, while over-proofing can cause it to collapse and turn sour.
“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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