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Dessert

Almond Icing

Almond icing made from blanched almonds, sugar, and egg whites, applied to a baked cake.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 3 ingredients
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Why it works: Almond and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 18% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 15,679 recipes. Both carry 1-penten-3-one, which smells fish, pungent. The science ↓

Almond Icing

Ingredients

Directions

Make the almond paste

  1. Blanch and finely grind the almonds with the egg whites.

  2. Add the sugar and mix well to form a soft paste.

Ice and bake

  1. Once the cake is baked, remove the hoop and paper from the sides.

  2. Spread the almond icing evenly on top of the cake and smooth it out.

  3. Place the cake in the oven until the icing sets and turns the color of a macaroon.

  4. Let it stand for 2 to 3 hours before icing with sugar icing.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

  1. Almond + sugartop 18% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together15,679 recipes

    Shared aroma: 1-penten-3-one (fish, pungent).

  2. Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together122,807 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

  3. Almond + eggtop 25% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together12,645 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Almonds
Provide the bulk, nutty flavor and fine texture of the icing paste.
Sugar
Sweetens the paste and gives it body so it can be spread smoothly.
Egg whites
Bind the ground almonds into a paste and help the icing set and brown in the oven.

The step that matters

Baking the almond icing until it sets. Egg whites set as they heat, while the sugar and almonds brown quickly. Checking the icing closely keeps it set and macaroon-coloured rather than scorched or dry.

Swap the almond

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, egg):

  1. Pecansfits about as well
  2. Almondthe original
  3. Chestnutfits about as well
  4. Milletfits less well

Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, 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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