Name: Mississippi Chocolate Cake
Ingredients: one-half cup butter; two squares of bitter chocolate; two cups of sugar; 2 eggs; two eggs; five cents worth of marshmallows

Why it works: Chocolate and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 13% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 15,404 recipes. Both carry guaiacol, which smells smoky, sweet. The science ↓

Mississippi Chocolate Cake

Ingredients

Directions

Make the cake

Melt one-half cup butter.
Add two eggs, dropping whole one at a time and beating thoroughly.
Add one cup sour cream.
Add one teaspoonful soda, beating until foam.
Add 1 1/2 cups flour.
Add two squares of bitter chocolate.
Add one cup nut meat well floured.
Mix well and bake in square tins.

Make the icing

Make icing of whites of two eggs, two cups sugar, and five cents worth of marshmallows.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

384Calories

8 gProtein

26 gFat

30 gCarbs

Counts 4 of 5 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 4 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Chocolate	1 oz (28g) semisweet	155
Butter	1 tbsp (14g)	102
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Sugar	1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated	49
Marshmallow	not in our table	0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By New Orleans Federation of Clubs. 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. 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.

Chocolate + sugartop 13% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together15,404 recipes

Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Butter + chocolatetop 16% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together10,543 recipes

Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).
Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together118,967 recipes

Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Butter + sugartop 17% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together98,233 recipes

Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together122,807 recipes

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

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

What each ingredient does

Butter: Adds richness and a tender crumb through fat.
Eggs: Add structure and help bind the batter as they are beaten in.
Sour cream (in the method): Adds moisture and a slight acidity that keeps the cake tender.
Soda (in the method): Reacts with the acid in the sour cream to lighten the batter.
Flour (in the method): Provides structure as the cake sets in the oven.
Bitter chocolate: Adds deep chocolate flavor and color to the cake.