Why it works: Sugar and flour are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 92,116 recipes. Both carry phenylacetaldehyde, which smells hawthorne, honey. The science ↓
Plain Sponge Cake
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a moderate oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the batter
Beat the yolks of the eggs with the powdered sugar until well combined.
Gradually stir in 1 cup of sifted flour.
Beat the egg whites to stiff peaks and fold them into the mixture.
In a separate bowl, mix 2 teaspoons of baking powder with the remaining flour and fold it in.
Slowly add the boiling water, stirring gently until combined.
Do not add more flour, even if the mixture seems thin.
Bake
Pour the batter into shallow tins and bake at 400°F (200°C) 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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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).
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Egg + sugartop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Egg and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 106,462 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
- Whipped whites trap air for lift, while yolks add richness and structure.
- Powdered sugar
- Sweetens the batter and helps give the sponge a fine, tender crumb.
- Flour
- Forms the structure that holds the risen sponge together as it sets.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas in the batter, making the sponge rise and become light.
The step that matters
Do not add extra flour. Extra flour develops more gluten and absorbs liquid, which makes the sponge tough and dense. A thin batter is normal here and will still bake up light.
“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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