Why it works: Flour and raisin match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,075 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Soda Cake
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a steady oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the batter
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
Rub the butter into the flour until well combined.
Add the salt, raisins or currants, powdered sugar, and nutmeg; mix thoroughly.
Dissolve the carbonate of soda in the warm milk.
Whisk the eggs and mix them with the milk.
Combine all ingredients and beat well for a few minutes.
Bake and cool
Butter the cake tins and line them with oiled paper.
Pour the mixture into the tins and bake immediately.
Bake for 1 hour and 45 minutes for a large cake or 1 hour for small cakes.
Once baked, turn the cake out carefully and let it cool on its side.
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.
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.
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Flour + raisintop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together9,075 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Raisin + nutmegtop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,377 recipes
Shared aroma: alpha-terpineol (lilac, floral).
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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 + nutmegtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,623 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 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
- Adds fat and richness, giving the cake a tender crumb and flavour.
- All-purpose flour
- Forms the main structure of the cake as its proteins set during baking.
- Eggs
- Bind the batter and add structure and richness as they set in the oven.
- Carbonate of soda
- Reacts with the acidity in the mixture to produce gas that helps the cake rise.
- Powdered sugar
- Sweetens the cake and contributes to its soft, tender texture.
- Raisins or currants
- Add chewy pockets of fruit sweetness throughout the cake.
The step that matters
Bake immediately after mixing. Baking soda starts releasing gas as soon as it meets liquid and acid. Delaying the bake lets much of that lift escape, so the cake can turn out flat and dense.
Swap the nutmeg
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, flour, raisin, sugar, milk, egg):
- Cinnamonfits better
- Nutmegthe original
- Capersfits less well
- Jalapenofits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, flour, raisin, sugar, milk, egg. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“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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