Why it works: Sugar and molasses are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,225 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Ginger Cookies
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 your oven to 350°F (175°C).
In a large bowl, mix together the sugar, molasses, butter, and hot water until well combined.
Stir in the ginger and baking powder.
Gradually add flour until the dough is firm enough to roll.
Shape and bake
Roll out the dough and cut into desired shapes.
Place on a baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned.
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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Sugar + molassestop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,225 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Molasses + gingertop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,116 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Sugar + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
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Ginger + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,564 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Butter and flour 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
- Molasses
- Adds moisture, dark color, and a rich, slightly bitter sweetness to the cookies.
- Butter
- Adds fat for tenderness and flavor in the dough.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas that helps the cookies rise and lighten.
- Flour
- Provides structure so the dough can be rolled and hold its shape.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps the cookies brown during baking.
- Ginger
- Supplies the warm, spicy aroma that defines the cookies.
The step that matters
Adding the flour. Flour must be added gradually because too much makes the dough stiff and dense, while too little leaves it too soft to roll and cut cleanly. Stop once the dough is firm enough to roll.
Swap the ginger
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, molasses, butter, flour):
- Cinnamonfits better
- Nutmegfits better
- Jalapenofits better
- Gingerthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, molasses, butter, flour. 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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