Why it works: Milk and tea work together. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 738 recipes. Both carry 4-heptenal, which smells creamy, biscuit. The science ↓
Chocolate Icing
Ingredients
Directions
Make the chocolate icing
Place two ounces of Walter Baker's chocolate in a shallow pan and melt it gradually without scorching.
Stir in three tablespoons of milk or cream and one tablespoon of water.
Mix well and add one scant tea-cupful of sugar.
Boil for about five minutes.
Ice the cakes
While the icing is hot and the cakes are nearly cold, spread some evenly over the surface of one cake.
Place a second icing layer on top, alternating cake and icing.
Cover the top and sides of the cakes and set them in a warm oven to harden.
Make the sugar mixture
Moisten one teacup of pulverized sugar with a little water and dissolve it in the stove without boiling.
Pour the hot sugar mixture into the whites of two well-beaten eggs and stir until thoroughly mixed.
Flavor the mixture with vanilla or lemon.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 4 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| 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 |
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.
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Milk + teatop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together738 recipes
Shared aroma: 4-heptenal (creamy, biscuit).
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Chocolate + teatop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together163 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-ethyl-3,6-dimethylpyrazine (roasted, nutty).
-
Chocolate + sugartop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together15,404 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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Chocolate + milktop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,128 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).
-
Milk + eggtop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together88,785 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
- Chocolate
- Provides the main flavor and, once melted and cooled, the firm body of the icing.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the icing and, when dissolved, gives the second mixture a smooth, glossy body.
- Eggs
- Whites beaten into the sugar mixture add lightness and help the icing set smooth.
- Milk
- Adds moisture and softens the chocolate so it spreads smoothly.
The step that matters
Melting the chocolate gradually. Chocolate scorches and turns grainy if overheated. Melting it slowly over gentle heat keeps it smooth and glossy, so the icing spreads evenly.
“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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