Why it works: Molasses and flour are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 16% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 10,429 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Graham Bread
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
Combine yeast and water in a bowl.
Stir in molasses and mix well.
Gradually add Graham flour until a dough forms.
Mold the dough slightly and let it rise.
Bake
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Bake for one hour.
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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Molasses + flourtop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together10,429 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Yeast
- Produces gas that makes the dough rise and become light.
- Graham flour
- Forms the dough's structure and gives a coarse, nutty texture.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness, depth of flavour and a darker colour to the crumb.
- Water
- Hydrates the flour so its proteins can form gluten for structure.
The step that matters
Adding the Graham flour gradually. Graham flour absorbs liquid at its own pace, so adding it slowly lets you stop once the dough feels right. Too much flour makes the dough stiff and dense, which limits how well it rises.
“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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