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 ↓
Birthday Cake with Glaze
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a moderate oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare
Sift the sugar, then measure it.
Wash the butter in ice water until it is white and creamy, then dry it with a towel.
Butter a large round cake tin and line the bottom with paper.
Make the batter
Add the butter to the sugar and rub both together until creamy.
Stir in the egg yolks one by one, beating until light and foamy.
Stir in 1 cup of sifted flour, then add the milk, followed by another cup of sifted flour.
Mix well and stir in the last cup of flour with the baking powder sifted in.
Gently fold in the well-beaten egg whites and the rose water.
Bake and cool
Pour in the mixture and bake in a 350°F (175°C) oven for 1 hour.
Test for doneness by inserting a fine broom whisk into the center; it should come out dry.
Let the cake cool partially on a wire rack.
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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Butter + flourtop 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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Sugar + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
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Egg + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Butter and flour 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
- Butter
- Creamed with sugar, it traps air and fat that give the cake a tender, rich crumb.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the cake and, creamed with butter, helps create a light, aerated texture.
- Eggs
- Yolks add richness and emulsify the batter, while whites trapped air help the cake rise and set.
- Flour
- Provides the starch and structure that sets the cake's crumb as it bakes.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas in the oven, lifting the batter so the cake rises.
- Milk
- Adds moisture and liquid that hydrates the flour and keeps the crumb soft.
The step that matters
Gently fold in the well-beaten egg whites. The egg whites hold air that gives the cake lift. Stirring or mixing vigorously at this point deflates them, which leaves the finished cake dense and flat.
“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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