Why it works: Sugar and flour are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 92,116 recipes. Both carry phenylacetaldehyde, which smells hawthorne, honey. The science ↓
Sunshine Cake
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a hot oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the batter
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Beat the egg whites to stiff peaks in a bowl.
Beat the egg yolks with the sugar for about 15 minutes in another bowl.
Add the grated orange peel and orange juice to the yolk mixture.
Sift part of the flour into the yolk mixture.
Fold in part of the beaten egg whites.
Repeat until all ingredients are combined.
Bake and finish
Pour the batter into an ungreased angel food cake pan.
Place a dish of water in the oven while baking.
Bake for 50–60 minutes, checking for doneness with a clean straw.
If the cake browns too quickly, cover it with thick paper.
Ice the cooled cake with boiled icing flavored with orange juice.
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 + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
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Flour + eggtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Sugar + orangetop 20% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together19,212 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Flour + orangetop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,821 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Flour and egg barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 106,462 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 trap air and give the cake its light, airy structure.
- Egg yolks
- Add richness and tenderness to the batter and help bind it with the sugar.
- Flour
- Provides the structure that holds the risen foam so the cake sets rather than collapses.
- Pulverized sugar
- Sweetens the batter and, when beaten with the yolks, helps create a smooth, fine crumb.
- Orange juice
- Adds moisture and bright citrus acidity and flavor to the batter.
The step that matters
Folding in the beaten egg whites. Egg whites hold the cake's air. Stirring them vigorously deflates the foam and produces a dense cake, so fold gently and only until combined.
Swap the orange
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, flour, egg):
- Raisinfits better
- Vanillafits better
- Lemonfits better
- Orangethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against 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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