Why it works: Milk and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 81,283 recipes. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
Modern Cookery
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.
Make the dough
In a large bowl, combine the flour and salt.
Gradually add the skimmed milk and mix until a dough forms.
Knead the dough lightly until it is smooth and elastic.
Let the dough rise for 1 hour.
If using, add cream or sweet buttermilk for improved texture.
Shape and bake
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Grease shallow round earthen pans with butter.
Divide the dough into 3 loaves and place in the prepared pans.
Bake for 1 hour or until golden brown.
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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Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Flour + buttertop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + milktop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Flour and butter barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 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
- All-purpose flour
- Forms the gluten network that gives the bread its structure and chew.
- Skimmed milk
- Hydrates the flour so the dough forms and adds moisture to the crumb.
- Salt
- Controls yeast-free dough flavor and tightens the gluten for a firmer texture.
The step that matters
Kneading the dough. Kneading develops the gluten network so the dough becomes smooth and elastic and can hold the gas that makes it rise. Under-kneaded dough bakes up dense and crumbly.
“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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