Name: Chocolate Cake
Ingredients: 1 cup butter; 2 cups light brown sugar; 1 cup grated chocolate; 1 cup cream; 2 cups flour; 5 eggs; 2 teaspoons baking powder; 2 teaspoons vanilla

Why it works: Chocolate and vanilla are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 10,020 recipes. Both carry sotolon, which smells curry, maple. The science ↓

Chocolate 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 the batter

Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Cream together the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy.
Add the grated chocolate, cream, flour, baking powder, and vanilla, mixing well.
Separate the egg whites and yolks; beat them separately and then fold the whites into the batter.
Pour the batter into two greased cake pans.

Bake and finish

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Cool the layers and frost with boiled 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.

Chocolate + vanillatop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together10,020 recipes

Shared aroma: sotolon (curry, maple).
Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together41,516 recipes

Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together35,032 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Sugar + creamtop 9% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together43,450 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
Chocolate + creamtop 11% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together5,466 recipes

Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).

Sugar and vanilla barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 35,032 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

Butter: Creamed with sugar to trap air, giving the cake a tender, rich crumb.
Brown sugar: Creamed with butter for sweetness and moisture, and it helps the cake brown.
Eggs: Whites beaten and folded in add lift, while yolks add richness and structure.
Flour: Forms the main structure of the cake as the batter sets in the oven.
Baking powder: Releases gas during baking so the cake rises and becomes light.
Grated chocolate: Adds chocolate flavor and some richness to the batter.