Name: Elizabeth's Extreme Chocolate Lover's Cake
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 35 min
Yield: 1 - 2 layer 9 inch cake
Ingredients: 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour; 2 teaspoons baking soda; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 6 (1 ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate, chopped; 1/2 cup unsalted butter; 2 1/2 cups dark brown sugar; 3 eggs; 1 1/2 tablespoons vanilla extract; 1 cup sour cream; 1 cup water; 6 (1 ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate, chopped; 1/4 cup unsalted butter; 1 egg yolk; 4 cups confectioners' sugar; 2 tablespoons vanilla extract; 2 tablespoons heavy cream; 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened; 2 cups bittersweet chocolate chips; 1 cup heavy cream

Why it works: Chocolate and vanilla are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and 10,020 recipes mention both. Both carry sotolon, which smells curry, maple. The science ↓

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.

Chocolate + vanillatop 5% of all pairs

Aroma overlapmoderate

Mentioned together10,020 recipes

Shared aroma: sotolon (curry, maple).
Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairs

Aroma overlapmoderate

Mentioned together41,516 recipes

Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
Butter + cream cheesetop 8% of all pairs

Aroma overlapmoderate

Mentioned together2,747 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairs

Aroma overlaplow

Mentioned together35,032 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Sugar + creamtop 9% of all pairs

Aroma overlapmoderate

Mentioned together43,450 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).

Sugar and vanilla share little aroma chemistry, yet 35,032 recipes mention both: they likely work on texture and structure more than aroma.

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

Elizabeth's Extreme Chocolate Lover's Cake