Name: Spice Cake
Ingredients: 1 tablespoonful syrup 4 teaspoonful baking soda 4 small cup of milk 1 lb; 4 teaspoonful baking soda 4 small cup of milk 1 lb; 1 tablespoonful spice beat butter; 2 ozs; 4 small cup of milk 1 lb; 2 eggs 1 tablespoonful spice beat butter

Why it works: Milk and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 81,283 recipes. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓

Spice Cake

Ingredients

1 tablespoonful syrup 4 teaspoonful baking soda 4 small cup of milk 1 lb
4 teaspoonful baking soda 4 small cup of milk 1 lb
1 tablespoonful spice beat butter
2 ozs
4 small cup of milk 1 lb
2 eggs 1 tablespoonful spice beat butter

Directions

Mix the batter

Combine flour, brown sugar, currants, syrup, baking soda, and milk, then add butter, raisins and mixed peel, and spice.
Beat butter and sugar, eggs, and syrup together, and mix gradually.
Add flour, raisins, currants, mixed peel, and spice, and lastly the soda dissolved in milk.

Bake

Mix all well together, and bake in a moderate oven for about an hour and a half.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

784Calories

27 gProtein

26 gFat

108 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
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Milk	1 cup (244ml) whole	149
Butter	1 tbsp (14g)	102
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Syrup	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 Hamilton, Margaret. 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.

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.

Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together81,283 recipes

Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together118,967 recipes

Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Milk + eggtop 18% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together88,785 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Syrup + milktop 25% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together2,143 recipes

Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Syrup + buttertop 30% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together2,796 recipes

Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

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

What each ingredient does

Flour (in the method): Provides the main structure that holds the cake together as it bakes.
Eggs: Add structure and richness, helping the batter set firm in the oven.
Butter: Adds fat, which gives the cake a tender crumb and rich flavour.
Brown sugar (in the method): Adds sweetness and moisture, and contributes to the cake's browning.
Baking soda: Acts as a leavening agent, helping the cake rise as it bakes.

“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.