Why it works: Milk and flour are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 78,219 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Three-layer Cake Without an Egg
Ingredients
Directions
Make the batter
Cream one-half cup lard with one and one-half cups sugar.
Pour in one and one-third cups of milk and heat until sugar is dissolved.
Stir in gradually three cups of flour sifted with two heaping teaspoons baking powder and one tablespoon cornstarch.
Beat to a stiff batter and bake in three portions.
Assemble
May be put together with jelly or icing.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 2 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
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. See the original page.
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.
-
Milk + flourtop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Milk and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 78,219 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
- Lard (in the method)
- Creams with sugar to add fat, tenderness and a soft crumb.
- Sugar (in the method)
- Creamed with the fat, adds sweetness and helps give the cake a tender texture.
- Milk
- Provides moisture and dissolves the sugar when heated.
- Flour (in the method)
- Forms the main structure of the cake as it sets in the oven.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas in the batter so the layers rise and become light.
- Cornstarch
- Softens the flour's gluten, giving the layers a finer, more tender crumb.
The step that matters
Stir in the flour gradually. Adding the sifted flour mixture slowly and mixing only until smooth prevents lumps. Overmixing develops gluten, which can make the layers tough and dense.
“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.
You might also like
White Cake431 recipes
Pound Cake373 recipes
Orange Bundt Cake349 recipes
Spice Cake344 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.