Name: Raisin Cake
Ingredients: 1 ¼ pounds light dough; 1 teacup sugar (about ½ cup); 1 teacup butter (about ½ cup); 3 eggs; 1 teaspoon baking soda; 1 pound raisins; nutmeg or cinnamon to taste

Why it works: Raisin and nutmeg are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,377 recipes. Both carry alpha-terpineol, which smells lilac, floral. The science ↓

Raisin Cake

Oven, in the book's wordsA quick oven

Ingredients

Directions

The book says “a quick oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.

Prepare

Combine the light dough, sugar, butter, eggs, baking soda, raisins, and nutmeg or cinnamon in a mixing bowl. Mix until well combined.
Let the mixture rise before baking.

Bake

Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Pour the batter into a greased baking pan.
Bake for 1 hour or until golden brown.

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.

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.

Raisin + nutmegtop 6% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together5,377 recipes

Shared aroma: alpha-terpineol (lilac, floral).
Sugar + raisintop 13% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together12,481 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Butter + nutmegtop 16% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together24,377 recipes

Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together118,967 recipes

Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Egg + nutmegtop 17% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together24,744 recipes

Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).

Egg and nutmeg barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 24,744 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

Light dough: Forms the bulk of the cake and provides its base structure and texture.
Eggs: Add structure and richness, helping the cake set as it bakes.
Baking soda: Reacts to lift the batter so the cake rises and becomes lighter.
Butter: Adds fat for tenderness and a rich flavor.
Sugar: Sweetens the cake and helps it brown as it bakes.
Raisins: Add sweetness, moisture, and chewy pockets throughout the cake.