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 ↓
Squash Pie
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point. The book gives no cooking times either; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.
Prepare the filling
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
In a large bowl, combine the boiled squash, brown sugar, eggs, molasses, melted butter, ginger, cinnamon, salt, and milk. Mix until smooth and well combined.
Bake and serve
Pour the mixture into a pie crust.
Bake for 45-50 minutes or until set.
Let cool before serving.
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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Butter + milktop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Cinnamon + milktop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together12,655 recipes
Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).
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Sugar + cinnamontop 10% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together30,779 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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Sugar + molassestop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,225 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Sugar and cinnamon barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 30,779 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
- Eggs
- Set the custard-like filling so it firms up when baked.
- Boiled dry squash
- Provides the bulk and moist, smooth body of the pie filling.
- Brown sugar
- Adds sweetness and moisture, and deepens the flavor of the filling.
- Milk
- Adds liquid that loosens the filling and helps it bake to a custard.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness, dark color and a rich, slightly bitter depth.
The step that matters
Bake until set. Eggs set as they heat, so the pie should be baked until the centre no longer jiggles. Underbaking leaves a runny filling, while overbaking can make it cracked and rubbery. Cooling lets the filling finish setting fully.
Swap the ginger
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, egg, molasses, butter, cinnamon, milk):
- Nutmegfits better
- Clovefits about as well
- Cardamomfits about as well
- Gingerthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, egg, molasses, butter, cinnamon, milk. 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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