Why it works: Butter and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 81,283 recipes. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
Federal Cake
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the dough
Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C).
In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar.
Gradually add the flour and mix until combined.
Add the egg yolks, baking soda, and milk; knead into a smooth dough.
Shape and bake
Roll out the dough into thin sheets.
Cut the dough into diamond shapes.
Place the cakes on greased baking sheets and bake until golden.
Once baked, loosen the cakes from the sheets with a knife before they cool.
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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Butter + milktop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Flour + buttertop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + milktop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + sugartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
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Flour + eggtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Flour and butter 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
- All-purpose flour
- Provides the main structure that holds the dough and cakes together.
- Granulated sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps the cakes brown as they bake.
- Unsalted butter
- Adds fat for tenderness and richness, and is creamed with the sugar to trap air.
- Egg yolks
- Add richness and help bind the dough into a smooth, cohesive mass.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the dough to produce gas that helps the cakes rise and spread.
- Milk
- Adds moisture that hydrates the flour and softens the dough.
The step that matters
Loosening the cakes before they cool. As baked cakes cool they contract and stick to the hot metal sheet. Loosening them while still warm prevents tearing and breakage.
“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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