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 ↓
Hard Gingerbread
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 dough
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
In a bowl, mix flour, baking soda, ginger, and cinnamon.
In another bowl, cream butter and brown sugar until smooth.
Add molasses to the butter mixture and combine well.
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing until a stiff dough forms.
Shape and bake
Roll out the dough to about ½ inch thick on a floured surface.
Cut into small biscuit shapes or place in a baking sheet.
Make slits a quarter of an inch deep across the top.
Bake for 10-12 minutes until firm.
While hot, brush the top with molasses and let it dry.
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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Ginger + cinnamontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together6,380 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Flour + cinnamontop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together17,341 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Cinnamon + sugartop 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).
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Cinnamon + molassestop 11% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,928 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Cinnamon and sugar 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
- All-purpose flour
- Provides the structure that holds the stiff dough together as it bakes.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the molasses to lighten the texture and help the gingerbread rise.
- Unsalted butter
- Adds fat for tenderness and richness and helps bind the dough.
- Brown sugar
- Adds sweetness and moisture, and helps the baked top brown.
- Molasses
- Adds moisture, deep flavor, and browning, and gives the dark color to the crust.
- Ground ginger
- Gives the characteristic warm, spicy aroma and flavor.
The step that matters
Brushing the hot top with molasses. Brushing while hot lets the molasses soak in and set into a glossy, slightly sticky glaze as it cools. Brushing a cooled piece would leave a dull, sticky coating instead.
Swap the ginger
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (flour, cinnamon, butter, sugar, molasses):
- Nutmegfits better
- Cardamomfits about as well
- Clovefits about as well
- Gingerthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against flour, cinnamon, butter, sugar, molasses. 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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