Name: Orange Cake
Ingredients: one cup of granulated sugar; one-half cup of milk alternately; half cups of sifted flour into which a teaspoonful; a cup of powdered sugar; four eggs; two eggs beaten to a stiff froth; three layers if the pans are large; one dark in color--and the juice

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 ↓

Orange Cake

Ingredients

one cup of granulated sugar
one-half cup of milk alternately
half cups of sifted flour into which a teaspoonful
a cup of powdered sugar
four eggs
two eggs beaten to a stiff froth
three layers if the pans are large
one dark in color--and the juice

Directions

Make the cake

Beat the yolks of four eggs with one cup of granulated sugar to a cream.
Add the whites of two eggs beaten to a stiff froth.
Add one-half cup of milk alternately with one and a half cups of sifted flour that has been mixed with a teaspoonful and a half of baking powder.
Beat well.
Bake in three layers if the pans are large, or four if small, in a quick oven from seven to ten minutes.
Try with a broom straw.
When it comes out clean, remove from the oven.
Do not let them bake a moment too long, or they will not absorb the icing.

Make the filling and ice

For the filling, beat the whites of two eggs to a stiff froth.
Add a cup of powdered sugar, pouring it in all at once and beating hard.
Add the grated rind of an orange (select one dark in color) and the juice.
The mixture should be like a thick cream.
Spread thickly on the cake while hot.
Add enough sugar (about half a cupful) to the remaining mixture for frosting to harden.
Ice the top and sides.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

731Calories

27 gProtein

14 gFat

120 gCarbs

What these numbers assume: 4 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
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.

By Henrietta Latham Dwight. Recipe from a historical cookbook (Project Gutenberg).

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 + flourtop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together78,219 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Sugar + flourtop 15% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together92,116 recipes

Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
Flour + eggtop 15% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together106,462 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Milk + eggtop 18% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together88,785 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Sugar + milktop 18% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together77,875 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, 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

Eggs: Yolks cream with sugar and whites add lift and structure to the cake.
Sifted flour: Forms the cake's structure once mixed with the liquid and eggs.
Baking powder: Releases gas that makes the cake rise and turn light.
Granulated sugar: Sweetens the batter and helps create a fine, tender crumb when creamed.
Powdered sugar: Sweetens and thickens the filling so it spreads as a thick cream.
Milk: Adds moisture that hydrates the flour and keeps the batter smooth.