Why it works: Butter and milk 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 ↓
Sponge Cake
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a hot oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
In a large bowl, combine the flour and baking powder.
Make the batter
In another bowl, beat the egg yolks with the sugar and butter until well combined.
In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form.
Mix the egg yolk mixture with the flour mixture, then gradually add the milk.
Gently fold in the beaten egg whites.
Bake
Pour the batter into a greased cake pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden.
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.
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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Butter + milktop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Flour + buttertop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + milktop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + sugartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
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Flour + eggtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Flour and butter barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 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
- All-purpose flour
- Provides the main structure that holds the cake's crumb together as it sets.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas in the batter, causing the cake to rise and become light.
- Egg yolks
- Add richness and help bind the batter, giving a tender, moist crumb.
- Egg whites
- Trapped air from whipping lightens the batter and helps the cake rise.
- Butter
- Adds fat that tenderizes the crumb and gives a rich flavor.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the cake and helps keep it soft and moist, and aids browning.
The step that matters
Gently fold in the beaten egg whites. The whites hold air that makes the cake light. Stirring vigorously knocks that air out, so the cake rises less and comes out denser. Use a light, sweeping motion until just combined.
“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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