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Dessert

Frosting

A sweet frosting made with sugar syrup, egg whites, almonds, raisins, and citron.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 6 ingredients
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Why it works: Almond and raisin are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,781 recipes. Both carry 2-nonanone, which smells fruity, floral. The science ↓

Frosting

Ingredients

Directions

Make the frosting

  1. Boil the sugar and water until thick and waxy.

  2. Beat the egg whites to a stiff froth.

  3. Pour the syrup over the egg whites, beating until cool.

  4. Add the chopped almonds, raisins, and citron, mixing well.

Finish the cake

  1. Spread the frosting between the layers and over the top and sides of the cake.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

  1. Almond + raisintop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,781 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonanone (fruity, floral).

  2. Sugar + raisintop 13% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together12,481 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

  3. Sugar + almondtop 18% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together15,679 recipes

    Shared aroma: 1-penten-3-one (fish, pungent).

  4. Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together122,807 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

  5. Egg + raisintop 23% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together9,556 recipes

    Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).

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

What each ingredient does

Sugar
Cooked with water into a syrup that gives the frosting its body and sweetness.
Egg whites
Whipped to a stiff foam that gives the frosting its light, airy structure.
Blanched almonds
Add crunch and nutty flavour that contrast with the soft frosting.
Stoned raisins
Add chewy texture and natural sweetness throughout the frosting.
Chopped citron
Adds candied citrus flavour and a firm, chewy bite.

The step that matters

Pour the syrup over the egg whites, beating until cool. The syrup must be hot and thick enough to cook the whites slightly as it is beaten in. Pouring it in slowly while beating keeps it from clumping or deflating the foam, and beating until cool sets a stable, spreadable frosting.

“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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