Why it works: Sugar and vanilla are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 35,032 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
White 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
Cream the butter in a mixing bowl.
Beat in the sugar until well combined.
Add the vanilla extract and mix.
Sift the flour with the baking powder and stir it in gradually.
Gently fold in the stiffly beaten egg whites.
Bake
Pour the batter into a greased cake pan.
Bake at 350°F (175°C) until a toothpick inserted in the center 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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Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together35,032 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Vanilla + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together19,241 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Butter + vanillatop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,050 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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Sugar + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
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
- Butter
- Adds fat that gives the cake richness and a tender crumb.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the cake and helps it brown and stay moist.
- All-purpose flour
- Provides the structure that holds the cake together as it sets.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas in the batter so the cake rises and becomes light.
- Egg whites
- Trap air when beaten, adding lift and a light, airy texture.
The step that matters
Gently fold in the stiffly beaten egg whites. Egg whites hold air bubbles that give the cake its lift. Vigorous stirring knocks that air out, leaving a dense cake, so the whites must be folded in gently.
Swap the vanilla
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, sugar, flour, egg):
- Raisinfits better
- Vanillathe original
- Figfits less well
- Lemonfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, sugar, flour, egg. 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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