Why it works: Cinnamon and clove 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 ↓
Spanish Buns
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 batter
Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C).
In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, cinnamon, and cloves.
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, alternating with the milk, and mix until smooth.
Bake and finish
Pour the batter into square baking tins.
Bake for about 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Let cool and frost as desired.
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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Cinnamon + clovetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together14,189 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
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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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Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Flour + cinnamontop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together17,341 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Sugar + creamtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Eggs
- Bind the batter and add structure and richness as they set in the oven.
- All-purpose flour
- Forms the gluten-based structure that holds the buns together as they bake.
- Unsalted butter
- Adds tenderness and richness through its fat, and helps trap air when creamed with sugar.
- Granulated sugar
- Sweetens the batter and, creamed with butter, helps create a light, fluffy texture.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the acidic cream of tartar to produce gas that makes the batter rise.
- Cream of tartar
- Acidifies the batter so it reacts with baking soda, helping the buns rise and stay tender.
The step that matters
Adding the dry ingredients alternately with the milk. Mixing too vigorously once flour is added develops gluten and can make the buns tough. Mix only until smooth, and add the flour and milk in alternating portions so the batter stays evenly combined.
Swap the clove
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (flour, sugar, butter, milk, cinnamon, cream, egg):
- Nutmegfits better
- Cardamomfits better
- Allspicefits about as well
- Clovethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against flour, sugar, butter, milk, cinnamon, cream, egg. 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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