Why it works: Egg and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 21% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 122,807 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
Iceing for Cake
Ingredients
Directions
Make the icing
Beat the egg whites until stiff.
Gradually add the powdered sugar while beating for about 30 minutes.
If the icing is too thick, thin it with a little rose water.
Ice and dry the cake
Ensure the cake is almost cold before icing it.
Place the iced cake in a cool oven to dry.
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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Egg + sugartop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Sugar + rosetop 25% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,584 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Egg + rosetop 28% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,840 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Egg whites
- Whipped into a stiff foam that gives the icing its light, airy structure.
- Powdered sugar
- Dissolves into the whipped whites to sweeten and thicken the icing as it sets.
The step that matters
Adding the powdered sugar gradually while beating. Adding sugar slowly lets it dissolve fully into the foam. Dumping it in at once can deflate the whites and leave grainy, unevenly thick icing.
“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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