Why it works: Butter and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 81,283 recipes. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
Strawberry Shortcake
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the dough
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar.
Rub the butter into the dry ingredients.
Beat the egg until light.
Add the milk and stir into the dry mixture.
Mix quickly to form a smooth dough.
Turn the dough onto a floured board.
Lightly roll the dough until covered with flour.
Divide the dough in half.
Shape and bake
Roll out one half into a thin sheet the size of a small biscuit pan.
Place the rolled dough in a buttered pan.
Brush the top lightly with melted butter.
Roll out the second half the same way.
Place the second rolled dough on top of the first layer in the pan.
Press down evenly with your fingertips.
Bake for about 20 minutes.
Assemble and serve
Prepare the strawberries by cutting them lightly with a silver spoon.
Once the shortcake is baked, carefully separate the layers.
Cover one layer with the strawberries.
Place the other layer on top.
Cover with the remaining strawberries before serving.
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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Butter + milktop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Flour + buttertop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + milktop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + sugartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
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Flour + eggtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Flour and butter barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 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
- Flour
- Forms the structure of the dough once mixed with liquid.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas during baking so the shortcake rises and becomes light.
- Butter
- Rubbed into the flour to tenderise the crumb and adds richness.
- Egg
- Adds structure and richness and helps bind the dough.
- Milk
- Hydrates the flour to form a dough and adds moisture.
- Strawberries
- Provide sweet, acidic flavour and juice that moistens the layers.
The step that matters
Mix quickly to form a smooth dough.. Overworking wheat flour once liquid is added develops gluten, which makes the shortcake tough rather than tender. Mixing briefly keeps the crumb soft.
“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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