Why it works: Milk and vanilla are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 19,187 recipes. Both carry ethyl caproate, which smells fruity, apple peel. The science ↓
Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the batter
Cream the butter and sugar together.
Add the whole eggs and stir rapidly for several minutes.
Mix the baking powder with the flour, then add the milk and flour to the mixture.
Pour the boiling water over the chocolate and add it to the mixture.
Stir rapidly and add a few drops of vanilla.
Bake
Pour the batter into a buttered and floured 10x14 inch pan.
Bake in a 400°F (200°C) oven until done.
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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Milk + vanillatop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together19,187 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).
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Chocolate + vanillatop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together10,020 recipes
Shared aroma: sotolon (curry, maple).
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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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Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together35,032 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Sugar and vanilla barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 35,032 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
- Whisked air and protein give the cake structure and lift as it sets.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas in the batter, helping the cake rise in the oven.
- Butter
- Adds fat for a tender crumb and richer flavor.
- Chocolate
- Provides the chocolate flavor and some fat that softens the crumb.
- Flour
- Forms the gluten network that gives the cake its body.
The step that matters
Stir rapidly after adding the eggs. Vigorous beating incorporates air that leavens the batter, but overmixing once flour is added can toughen the crumb by developing gluten. Mix the flour in gently at the end.
“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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