Why it works: Flour and raisin match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,075 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Sultana Cake
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a moderate oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the batter
Beat together the butter and sugar until creamy.
Add the eggs two at a time, beating for 5 minutes between each addition.
Mix in the sifted flour and baking powder.
Stir in the thick cream, sultana raisins, and chopped citron until thoroughly combined.
Bake and finish
Pour the mixture into a well-buttered and paper-lined cake tin.
Bake in a moderate oven at 350°F (175°C) for 1 ½ hours.
Once done, spread with transparent icing.
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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Flour + raisintop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together9,075 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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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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Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Sugar + raisintop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together12,481 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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
- Creamed with sugar to trap air, giving the cake a light, tender crumb and rich flavour.
- Eggs
- Add structure and richness as they set, binding the cake and adding lift.
- Flour
- Forms the cake's structure as its proteins set during baking.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas in the heat, helping the cake rise.
- Sultana raisins
- Add chewy texture and natural sweetness throughout the cake.
The step that matters
Adding the eggs two at a time. Eggs added too quickly can break the creamed butter and sugar, causing curdling. Beating between additions lets each batch emulsify fully, keeping the batter smooth and airy for an even rise.
Swap the raisin
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, sugar, egg, flour, cream):
- Vanillafits about as well
- Raisinthe original
- Coconutfits less well
- Figfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, sugar, egg, flour, cream. 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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