Why it works: Ginger and cinnamon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 6,380 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓
Ginger Bread
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a hot oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the batter
Beat the egg in a bowl.
Add sour cream and molasses, and stir well.
Sift together flour, ginger, and cinnamon, then add to the mixture.
If desired, add baking powder and stir well.
Dissolve baking soda in a little water and add to the batter.
Bake
Pour the batter into gem pans or square pans.
Bake in a preheated oven at 400°F (200°C) for 20 minutes.
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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Ginger + cinnamontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together6,380 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Flour + cinnamontop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together17,341 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Molasses + cinnamontop 11% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,928 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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Flour + gingertop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,564 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Egg
- Binds the batter and adds structure as the bread sets.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness, dark color and moisture to the batter.
- Sour cream
- Adds moisture and tang, and tenderizes the crumb.
- All-purpose flour
- Provides the main structure of the bread.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the acidic sour cream and molasses to make the bread rise.
The step that matters
Dissolving the baking soda in water before adding it to the batter. Baking soda needs to be evenly dispersed in the batter so it reacts with the acidic sour cream and molasses; unevenly mixed soda can leave pockets of bitterness or uneven rising.
Swap the ginger
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (egg, cream, molasses, flour, cinnamon):
- Nutmegfits better
- Allspicefits better
- Cardamomfits about as well
- Gingerthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against egg, cream, molasses, flour, cinnamon. 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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