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 ↓
Snow Balls
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a moderately hot oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the batter
Beat the butter until creamy.
Gradually add the sugar, beating well.
Add the milk a little at a time.
Sift the flour three times.
Add two cups of sifted flour to the mixture.
Beat the mixture for five minutes.
Gently fold in the stiffly beaten egg whites.
Sift the baking powder with the remaining cup of flour.
Lightly add the sifted baking powder and flour to the batter.
Bake and finish
Pour the batter into a dripping pan lined with parchment paper.
Bake at 350°F (175°C) for about twenty minutes.
Cut the baked cookies into squares.
Ice the top and sides of the squares with soft icing.
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.
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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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Butter + milktop 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 and give the cookies a tender, rich texture.
- Egg whites
- Stiffly beaten and folded in to add lift and a light, airy structure.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the batter and helps cream the butter into a smooth base.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas in the batter to make the cookies rise and turn out lighter.
- Flour
- Provides the structure that holds the cookies together as they set.
- Sweet milk
- Adds moisture and softness to the dough.
The step that matters
Folding in the egg whites. Stiffly beaten whites hold air that gives lift. Overmixing or stirring vigorously deflates them, which makes the cookies dense. Fold gently and only until combined.
Swap the vanilla
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, egg, sugar, milk, flour):
- Vanillathe original
- Raisinfits about as well
- Figfits less well
- Coconutfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, egg, sugar, milk, 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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