Why it works: Flour and caraway match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,435 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Bath 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.
Prepare the batter
Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C).
In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
Stir in the brandy, rose water, and white wine until combined.
Gradually add the flour and mix until a smooth paste forms.
Fold in the caraway seeds.
Bake
Pour the batter into a greased cake pan and smooth the top.
Bake for about 45-50 minutes or 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.
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.
-
Flour + carawaytop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together1,435 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Butter + white winetop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,083 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
-
Brandy + white winetop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together620 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
-
Flour + buttertop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Rose + carawaytop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together93 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Flour and butter barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 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
- All-purpose flour
- Provides the starch and gluten network that gives the cake its structure.
- Unsalted butter
- Creamed with sugar to trap air and give a tender, rich crumb.
- Granulated sugar
- Creams with butter to create air pockets and adds sweetness and browning.
- Eggs
- Bind the batter and add structure and moisture as they set during baking.
- Brandy
- Adds liquid and aroma to the batter.
- Caraway seeds
- Add a distinct aromatic flavor throughout the cake.
The step that matters
Creaming the butter and sugar. Beating softened butter with sugar until light and fluffy traps air bubbles that expand in the oven and help lift the crumb. Under-creaming leaves a dense cake, while overbeating after adding flour can make it tough.
Swap the caraway
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (flour, butter, sugar, egg, brandy, rose, white wine):
- Cinnamonfits better
- Nutmegfits better
- Carawaythe original
- Tarragonfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against flour, butter, sugar, egg, brandy, rose, white 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.
You might also like
Brandy Peaches68 recipes
Brandy Cream21 recipes
Brandy Pudding13 recipes
White Cake431 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.