Why it works: Brandy and currant are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,057 recipes. Both carry ethyl cinnamate, which smells sweet, balsamic. The science ↓
Raisin Oake
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point. The book gives no cooking times either; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.
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.
Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
Stir in the sour cream, baking soda, brandy, and wine until combined.
Fold in the raisins and currants.
Bake and serve
Pour the batter into a greased baking pan and bake for about 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Let cool before serving.
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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Brandy + curranttop 7% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,057 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
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Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Brandy + winetop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,427 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).
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Sugar + creamtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Raisin + curranttop 10% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together6,180 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, creamy).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Butter
- Creaming with sugar traps air, giving the cake a light, tender crumb and rich flavour.
- Sugar
- Creams with butter for aeration and adds sweetness and browning to the crust.
- Eggs
- Bind the batter and add structure and richness as they set in the oven.
- Sour cream
- Adds moisture and tanginess, keeping the crumb tender.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the acidic sour cream to produce gas that helps the cake rise.
- Raisins
- Add chewy texture and concentrated sweetness throughout the cake.
The step that matters
Creaming the butter and sugar. Beating until light and fluffy incorporates air bubbles that expand in the oven and help lift the batter. Under-creaming leaves a denser cake.
Swap the raisin
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, sugar, egg, cream, brandy, wine, currant):
- Vanillafits better
- Raspberryfits better
- Figfits about as well
- Raisinthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, sugar, egg, cream, brandy, wine, currant. 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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