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Marshmallow Cake

A sweet cake with marshmallow filling and optional frosting.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 13 ingredients
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Marshmallow Cake

Why it works: Milk and vanilla are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 19,187 recipes. Both carry ethyl caproate, which smells fruity, apple peel. The science ↓

Marshmallow 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. 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 the batter

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).

  2. In a bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form.

  3. In another bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.

  4. Add the milk and mix well.

  5. Sift together the flour and baking powder, then gradually add to the butter mixture.

  6. Fold in the beaten egg whites and vanilla extract gently.

  7. Pour the batter into a greased cake pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Cool and make the filling

  1. Let the cake cool, then cut through the center with a sharp knife.

  2. For the filling, boil 1 cup sugar and ¼ cup water until it reaches a hair stage.

  3. Beat the egg white until stiff, then slowly add the sugar syrup while continuing to beat.

  4. Fold in the melted chocolate and marshmallows for the filling.

  5. Fill the center of the cake with the marshmallow filling.

Top and serve

  1. Top with additional marshmallows or frosting as desired.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

  1. Milk + vanillatop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together19,187 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).

  2. Vanilla + chocolatetop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together10,020 recipes

    Shared aroma: sotolon (curry, maple).

  3. Butter + milktop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together81,283 recipes

    Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).

  4. Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together35,032 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

  5. Flour + buttertop 12% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together124,287 recipes

    Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

Sugar and vanilla barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 35,032 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

Egg whites
Whipped to stiff peaks, they add lift and an airy, light crumb to the cake.
Butter
Creamed with sugar to trap air and give the cake tenderness and richness.
Flour
Provides the structure that holds the cake together as it bakes.
Baking powder
Releases gas in the batter to make the cake rise.
Sugar
Sweetens the cake and helps the creamed butter hold air while beating.
Marshmallows
Melt into the chocolate filling, adding sweetness and a soft, chewy texture.

The step that matters

Adding the sugar syrup to the beaten egg white. The syrup must be at hair stage and poured in slowly while beating. This cooks the egg white and keeps it stable, so the filling stays glossy and does not deflate.

“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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