Why it works: Clove and cinnamon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 14,189 recipes. Both carry ethyl cinnamate, which smells sweet, balsamic. The science ↓
Peppkr Nuts
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a slow oven”. The 300°F (150°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the dough
Mix the grated lemon peel, sugar, chopped citron, cloves, allspice, cinnamon, pepper, and baking soda in a bowl.
Add enough flour to form a stiff dough.
Roll out the dough to about ½ inch thick and cut into pieces the size of a silver quarter.
Spread the cut pieces on a baking board and let them sit overnight.
Bake
Bake in a slow oven at 300°F (150°C) until lightly browned.
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.
-
Clove + cinnamontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together14,189 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
-
Clove + allspicetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together7,874 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
-
Allspice + cinnamontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together5,536 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
-
Lemon + peppertop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together27,047 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
-
Clove + peppertop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together17,451 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Granulated sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps the cookies brown during baking.
- Flour
- Provides the structure that lets the dough hold its shape when rolled and cut.
- Baking soda
- Reacts to lighten the dough and help the cookies rise and spread slightly.
- Citron
- Adds chopped candied fruit texture and concentrated fruity sweetness.
- Ground cinnamon
- Contributes warm, sweet aroma that defines the spiced flavor.
The step that matters
Resting the cut pieces overnight. Resting lets the dough dry out slightly at the surface, which helps the cookies keep their shape and bake to a firmer, less spreading texture.
Swap the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, clove, allspice, cinnamon, pepper, flour):
- Limefits about as well
- Raisinfits about as well
- Lemonthe original
- Figfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, clove, allspice, cinnamon, pepper, 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.
You might also like
Lemon Cake228 recipes
Lemon Ice147 recipes
Lemon Sherbet103 recipes
Cinnamon Rolls71 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.