Why it works: Molasses and sugar 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 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. 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
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Make the batter
In a bowl, mix together the molasses, sugar, shortening, and sour milk.
In another bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and ginger.
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing until smooth.
Pour the batter into a shallow pan.
Bake
Bake for about 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
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 + sugartop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,225 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Molasses + gingertop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,116 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Flour + milktop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Sugar + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
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Flour + gingertop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,564 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Flour and milk barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 78,219 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, deep sweetness and the dark color typical of gingerbread.
- Flour
- Provides the structure that holds the batter together as it bakes.
- Sour milk
- Its acidity reacts with the baking soda so the cake rises and softens.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the acidic sour milk and molasses to produce gas for rising.
- Shortening
- Adds fat for a tender crumb and moist texture.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps with browning and a softer crumb.
The step that matters
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Adding the dry mix gradually and stirring only until smooth keeps the batter evenly combined. Overmixing once flour is wet develops gluten, which can make the gingerbread tough and dense.
Swap the ginger
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (molasses, sugar, flour, milk):
- Cinnamonfits better
- Nutmegfits about as well
- Jalapenofits about as well
- Gingerthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against molasses, sugar, flour, milk. 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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