Why it works: Sugar and molasses are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,225 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Ginger Cookies
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.
Make the dough
In a large bowl, mix together the butter, baking soda, sugar, ginger, molasses, salt, and warm water until well combined.
The mixture should be rather soft.
Use flour to thicken the dough until it can just drop off a spoon.
Shape and bake
Shape the dough into cookies and place them on a baking sheet.
Bake in a preheated oven at 400°F (200°C) until golden brown.
Enjoy warm.
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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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.
-
Sugar + molassestop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,225 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
-
Ginger + molassestop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,116 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
-
Sugar + gingertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together14,054 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-penten-3-one (fish, pungent).
-
Butter + sugartop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
-
Butter + gingertop 26% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,152 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-decenal (waxy, orange).
Sugar and ginger barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 14,054 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
- Adds fat for tenderness and rich flavor in the cookies.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the molasses acid to lift the cookies and help them brown.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the dough and promotes browning at the baking temperature.
- Molasses
- Adds moisture, dark color, and a deep sweet, acidic flavor.
- Ground ginger
- Provides the main spiced aroma that defines the cookies.
The step that matters
Thickening the dough with flour. The dough must be soft enough to shape but firm enough to hold its form. Adding flour gradually until it just drops from a spoon keeps the cookies from spreading too thin or turning dense and tough.
Swap the ginger
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, sugar, molasses):
- Cinnamonfits better
- Gingerthe original
- Nutmegfits about as well
- Clovefits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, sugar, molasses. 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.
More ginger cookies recipes
You might also like
Molasses Cookies96 recipes
Ginger Cake93 recipes
Molasses Cake90 recipes
Soft Ginger Bread85 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.