Why it works: Nutmeg and cinnamon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 11,917 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓
Cake, Coffee
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a moderate oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the batter
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Beat the butter until creamy, then mix in the brown sugar.
Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
Gradually add the flour and spices, beating vigorously.
Flour the raisins, currants, and shredded citron peel, then fold them into the batter.
Stir in the warm coffee and molasses until well combined.
Mix in the baking powder and pour the batter into a greased cake tin lined with parchment paper.
Bake
Bake for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center 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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Nutmeg + cinnamontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together11,917 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Clove + cinnamontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together14,189 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
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Clove + allspicetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together7,874 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Allspice + cinnamontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together5,536 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Allspice + nutmegtop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together3,331 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Butter
- Creaming with sugar traps air and adds richness and a tender crumb.
- Eggs
- Bind the batter and add structure and moisture to the cake.
- Flour
- Forms the main structure of the cake as its proteins set in the oven.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas in the batter, helping the cake rise and become light.
- Molasses
- Adds moisture, deep sweetness, and a darker color to the cake.
- Raisins
- Add chewy texture and concentrated sweetness throughout the cake.
The step that matters
Folding in the dried fruit after flouring. Flouring the raisins, currants, and citron helps keep them suspended in the batter instead of sinking to the bottom during baking. Fold gently so the batter keeps the air trapped by creaming and the baking powder's gas.
Swap the clove
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, sugar, egg, flour, allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon):
- Clovethe original
- Cardamomfits about as well
- Gingerfits less well
- Turmericfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, sugar, egg, flour, allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon. 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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