Why it works: Butter and cream are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 41,516 recipes. Both carry delta-dodecalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓
Cake Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a rather quick oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Make the batter
In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add the cream and brandy, mixing well.
In a separate bowl, beat the eggs and then add them to the mixture.
Sift together the flour and baking soda, then gradually add to the wet ingredients.
Pour the batter into a greased cake pan.
Bake
Bake for about 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
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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Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 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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Butter + brandytop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,127 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
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
- Creams with the sugar to trap air, giving a light, tender crumb and rich flavor.
- Eggs
- Add structure and richness as they set during baking, binding the cake.
- Flour
- Forms the main structure of the cake as its proteins set in the oven.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the cake and helps create a light texture when creamed with butter.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the batter's acidity to produce gas, helping the cake rise.
- Cream
- Adds moisture and richness, softening the crumb.
The step that matters
Sifting and adding the flour mixture gradually. Adding flour gradually and mixing only until combined keeps the batter smooth and prevents overdeveloping gluten, which would make the cake tough. Sifting breaks up lumps so the baking soda distributes evenly for an even rise.
“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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