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 ↓
Pound Cake
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare
Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C).
Make the batter
Cream the softened butter until smooth.
Gradually add the sugar, mixing well.
Incorporate the egg whites and yolks, mixing until combined.
Sift in the flour.
Mix thoroughly for about an hour.
Add the rose water, nutmeg or cinnamon, heavy cream, and baking soda.
Mix until smooth.
Bake
Pour the batter into a greased cake pan.
Bake for about 45-60 minutes, or until 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.
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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Flour + nutmegtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,623 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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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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Flour + buttertop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Nutmeg + creamtop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,920 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
Flour and butter 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
- All-purpose flour
- Provides the structure that holds the cake together as it bakes.
- Egg whites and yolks
- Egg proteins set during baking to give structure, while yolks add richness and tenderness.
- Unsalted butter
- Adds fat for a tender crumb and rich flavour.
- Granulated sugar
- Sweetens the cake and helps it brown while tenderising the crumb.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the batter's acidity to produce gas that helps the cake rise.
- Heavy cream
- Adds moisture and fat for a softer, richer crumb.
The step that matters
Mix the batter thoroughly. Creaming and mixing build the structure and air in the batter. Overmixing after the flour is added can develop gluten, making the cake tough and dense, so mix only until smooth and 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.
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