Why it works: Milk and vanilla are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 19,187 recipes. Both carry ethyl caproate, which smells fruity, apple peel. The science ↓
Corn Starch 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 the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Make the batter
In a bowl, cream the butter and sugar together.
Add the egg whites and mix until well combined.
Dissolve the corn starch in the milk and add it to the mixture.
Sift together the corn starch, flour, and baking powder, then fold into the batter.
Stir in the vanilla.
Bake
Pour the batter into a greased cake pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick 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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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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Milk + vanillatop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together19,187 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).
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Butter + milktop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together35,032 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Corn + vanillatop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,943 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
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Corn + milktop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,955 recipes
Shared aroma: hexanal (green, grassy).
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
- Adds fat that carries flavor and creates a tender, rich crumb.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the cake and helps trap air when creamed with butter for a lighter texture.
- Egg whites
- Provide structure and help the cake set as it bakes.
- Corn starch
- Tenderizes the crumb, giving a finer, softer texture than flour alone.
- Flour
- Provides the main structure that holds the cake together as it bakes.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas in the batter so the cake rises and becomes light.
The step that matters
Fold the dry ingredients into the batter. Folding gently and only until combined keeps air in the batter. Overmixing develops gluten in the flour, which can make the cake tough and dense.
“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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