Why it works: Sugar and flour are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 92,116 recipes. Both carry phenylacetaldehyde, which smells hawthorne, honey. The science ↓
Orange Cake
Ingredients
Directions
Make the batter
Beat the whites of three eggs until soft peaks form.
Beat the yolks of five eggs separately.
Cream the butter and sugar together, then add grated rind and juice of one orange (except one tablespoonful) and beat lightly.
Add cold water, part of the sifted flour with baking powder, then the beaten egg yolks, and the rest of the flour alternately, beating lightly after each addition.
Make the frosting
For the frosting, beat the whites of two eggs until soft peaks form.
Add the tablespoonful of orange juice and two small cups of sugar to the beaten whites, and beat until light.
Bake and finish
Bake the batter in two square tins.
When the cakes are a little warm, spread frosting between them and on top.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 4 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Orange | 1 medium (131g) | 62 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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.
-
Sugar + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
-
Flour + eggtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Sugar + orangetop 20% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together19,212 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
-
Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
-
Flour + orangetop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,821 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Flour and egg barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 106,462 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
- Eggs
- Whipped whites and beaten yolks add structure and lightness to the cake and frosting.
- Flour
- Sets the crumb and gives the cake its structure as it bakes.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the cake and helps the frosting become light and glossy.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas in the batter, causing the cake to rise.
- Orange
- Its rind and juice add aroma and a bright acidity.
The step that matters
Adding the flour alternately and beating lightly. Folding in flour and liquid in portions while beating only lightly keeps the batter from becoming tough, and preserves the air from the beaten eggs so the cake stays light.
Swap the orange
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, flour, egg):
- Raisinfits better
- Vanillafits better
- Lemonfits better
- Orangethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, flour, egg. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“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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