Name: Low-fat Devil's Chocolate Fudge Cake
Ingredients: 1 cup water; 1/2 cup prune puree; 3 large egg white; 1 1/2 tsp vanilla; 1 cup flour; 2 tbsp flour; 1 cup sugar; 2 tbsp sugar; 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder; 1 1/2 tsp baking powder; 1/4 tsp baking soda; 1/4 tsp salt; 2 1/2 cup powdered sugar; 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder; 1/4 cup 2% lowfat milk

Why it works: Vanilla and milk 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 ↓

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.

Vanilla + milktop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together19,187 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).
Vanilla + sugartop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together35,032 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Vanilla + cocoa powdertop 10% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,189 recipes

Shared aroma: sotolon (curry, maple).
Vanilla + flourtop 12% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together19,241 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Flour + cocoa powdertop 13% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,244 recipes

Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).

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

What each ingredient does

Egg whites: Provide structure and lift, helping the cake set and hold its crumb.
Flour: Forms the cake's structure as its proteins set during baking.
Cocoa powder: Supplies the chocolate flavor and deep color of the cake and icing.
Prune puree: Adds moisture and sweetness, letting the cake stay tender without much fat.
Baking powder: Releases gas during baking so the cake rises and becomes light.

The step that matters

Cooling the cake before icing. Icing a warm cake melts the sugar and cocoa into a runny glaze that soaks in rather than sitting on top. Cooling fully lets the icing set into a smooth, even layer.

“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.

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Chocolate	1 oz (28g) semisweet	155
Milk	1 cup (244ml) whole	149
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Sugar	1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated	49
Vanilla	1 tsp extract (4ml)	12
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Water	not in our table	0
Prune	not in our table	0

Low-fat Devil's Chocolate Fudge Cake