Why it works: Sugar and egg 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 Cakes
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the icing
Beat and sift the sugar.
Combine sugar, rose water, and beaten egg whites in a bowl, then whisk the mixture well.
Ice the cake
Dip a feather in the icing.
Cover the cake thoroughly.
Place the cake in the oven to harden.
Do not let it discolor.
Store
Store the cake in a dry place.
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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Sugar + eggtop 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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Rose + eggtop 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 foam that holds the icing together and helps it set firm.
- Fine sugar
- Sweetens the icing and dries into a crisp, firm coating as it sets.
- Rose water
- Adds a floral aroma and flavour to the icing.
The step that matters
Place the cake in the oven to harden. Gentle heat dries the egg white and sugar mixture so it sets firm. Too much heat or too long in the oven browns the sugar and egg white, which is why the icing must not discolor.
“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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