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 ↓
Rose Water Icing
Ingredients
Directions
Make the icing
Pound the sugar and rose water together in a mortar.
Beat the egg whites until stiff, then add them to the sugar mixture and whisk well.
Ice and harden the cake
When the cake is almost cold, dip a feather in the icing and cover the cake thoroughly.
Place the cake in the oven to harden.
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.
-
Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
-
Sugar + rosetop 25% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,584 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
-
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
- Sifted sugar
- Forms the sweet bulk of the icing and sets firm as it dries.
- Egg whites
- Whipped to stiff foam, they give the icing lift and a glossy, hardening structure.
- Rose water
- Adds floral aroma and liquid to loosen the sugar into a spreadable icing.
The step that matters
Place the cake in the oven to harden. Gentle heat dries the egg white and sugar coating into a firm shell. Too much heat can brown or puff the icing, so it needs a low, watched bake.
“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
White Cake431 recipes
Pound Cake373 recipes
Orange Bundt Cake349 recipes
Spice Cake344 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.