Name: American Flag Cake
Prep time: 1 h 30 min
Cook time: 30 min
Yield: 1 layer cake
Ingredients: 3 (10.25 ounce) packages white cake mix; 9 egg whites; 1 cup vegetable oil; 3 3/4 cups whole milk; 2 tablespoons clear vanilla extract; 2 tablespoons red food coloring; 1 tablespoon blue food coloring; 1 cup white chocolate chips; 10 cups fluffy white frosting; 1 tablespoon white chocolate chips, or as needed; 2 tablespoons white sugar, or as needed, 1 4-inch round paper or cardboard stencil

Why it works: Milk and vanilla are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 19,187 recipes. Both carry ethyl caproate, which smells fruity, apple peel. The science ↓

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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.

Milk + vanillatop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together19,187 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).
Vanilla + chocolatetop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together10,020 recipes

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

Smell alikelow

Cooked together35,032 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Chocolate + sugartop 13% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together15,404 recipes

Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Milk + chocolatetop 13% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together9,128 recipes

Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).

Vanilla and sugar barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 35,032 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

American Flag Cake