Why it works: Nutmeg and cinnamon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 11,917 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓
A Good Pound Cake
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the batter
Beat the butter until creamy.
In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites and yolks separately.
Mix the flour, sugar, cloves, nutmeg, and cinnamon together.
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the butter and eggs, mixing well.
Add the wine and caraway seeds, and beat for a full hour.
Bake
Grease a pan and bake in a preheated oven at 400°F (200°C) for one hour.
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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Nutmeg + cinnamontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together11,917 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Clove + cinnamontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together14,189 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
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Clove + nutmegtop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together8,686 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Flour + nutmegtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,623 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + cinnamontop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together17,341 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Butter
- Creams with sugar to trap air and adds richness and a tender crumb.
- Eggs
- Whites add lift and structure, while yolks add richness and help bind the batter.
- All-purpose flour
- Provides the protein network that gives the cake its structure.
- Granulated sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps hold air in the creamed butter, aiding tenderness.
The step that matters
Beating the batter for a full hour. Long beating incorporates air and builds the batter's structure, but the flour's gluten also develops with extended mixing, so the cake can turn dense and tough if overworked.
Swap the clove
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, egg, flour, sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon, wine):
- Cardamomfits about as well
- Clovethe original
- Allspicefits about as well
- Gingerfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, egg, flour, sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon, wine. 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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