Why it works: Flour and almond are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 8,673 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Almond Cake
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.
Prepare the almonds
Pour boiling water over the almonds to blanch them, then remove the skins.
Soak the almonds in cold water to keep them white until ready to use.
Pound the blanched almonds in a mortar with rose water until smooth.
Make the batter
In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
Add the egg yolks to the butter and sugar mixture, mixing well.
Stir in the flour and beaten egg whites alternately until fully combined.
Fold in the pounded almonds.
Bake
Pour the batter into a buttered cake mold or small pound cake pans.
Bake in a preheated oven at 350°F (175°C) until golden and a toothpick 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.
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.
-
Flour + almondtop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,673 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Butter + almondtop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,245 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-pentanedione (butter, sweet).
-
Almond + rosetop 11% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,465 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
-
Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Sugar + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
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 sugar to trap air and give the cake a tender, rich crumb.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the cake and helps creaming hold air for a light, fluffy texture.
- All-purpose flour
- Provides the structure that holds the cake together as it bakes.
- Eggs
- Yolks add richness and moisture, while whites add lift and structure.
- Blanched almonds
- Pounded into the batter to add moisture, nutty flavor, and a dense, tender texture.
The step that matters
Folding in the egg whites and almonds. Overmixing after adding the flour deflates the whipped air and toughens the gluten, leaving a dense, tough cake. Stir gently and only until combined.
“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.
More almond cake recipes
You might also like
Almond Sponge Cake26 recipes
Almond Custard22 recipes
Almond Wafers22 recipes
Almond Paste Tartlets10 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.