Why it works: Butter and egg are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 17% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 118,967 recipes. Both carry decanal, which smells soap, orange peel. The science ↓
Jelly Cake
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point. The book gives no cooking times either; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.
Prepare
Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C).
In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add the egg yolks and beat well until combined.
In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form.
Gently fold the egg whites into the butter mixture.
Bake and serve
Pour the batter into a greased cake pan and bake for 25-30 minutes.
Once baked, let it cool and spread jelly on top before serving.
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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Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
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Butter + sugartop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Butter
- Adds fat and richness, and helps give the cake a tender crumb.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the cake and, creamed with butter, traps air that helps it rise.
- Egg yolks
- Add richness, moisture, and emulsifying fat to the batter.
- Egg whites
- Whipped to stiff peaks, they add airy lift to the batter.
- Jelly
- Adds sweetness and fruity flavor and moisture on top of the cooled cake.
The step that matters
Gently fold the egg whites into the butter mixture. Whipped egg whites hold air that gives the cake its lift. Stirring or beating vigorously deflates them, leaving a dense cake.
“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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