Why it works: Milk and vanilla are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 19,187 recipes. Both carry ethyl caproate, which smells fruity, apple peel. The science ↓
Vanilla Wafers
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a slow oven”. The 400°F (200°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.
Make the dough
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
In a bowl, cream together the sugar and butter until light and fluffy.
Add the egg, milk, and vanilla extract, mixing well.
In a separate bowl, combine the flour and baking powder.
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture until a dough forms.
Shape and bake
Roll the dough thin on a floured surface and cut into desired shapes.
Place on a baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes or until lightly 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.
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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Milk + vanillatop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together19,187 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).
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Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together35,032 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Vanilla + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together19,241 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Sugar and vanilla barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 35,032 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
- Butter
- Creamed with sugar to trap air, giving a light, tender crumb and rich flavour.
- Sugar
- Creamed with butter for lightness and sweetness, and helps the wafers brown.
- Egg
- Binds the dough together and adds richness and structure.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas in the oven, helping the wafers rise slightly and stay light.
- Flour
- Provides the structure that holds the wafers together once baked.
- Milk
- Adds moisture so the dough comes together into a workable dough.
The step that matters
Roll the dough thin. Thin dough bakes quickly and turns crisp all the way through, while thicker pieces stay soft and cakey in the middle. Even thickness also helps the wafers bake evenly and brown at the same rate.
Swap the vanilla
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, egg, milk, butter, flour):
- Vanillathe original
- Raisinfits about as well
- Figfits less well
- Coconutfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, egg, milk, butter, flour. 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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