My basic recipe for cake consists of butter, sugar, egg, flour & milk.
The quantities - absolute & relative - matter. As does the precise method & order of combining them
The size & shape of the cooking tin makes a big difference. As does the temperature of the oven. And the type of oven - ask anybody who has switched to fan assisted. My grandmother produced superb results with an oven built into the range at the side of the coal fire in the living room, which also, via a back boiler, provided the hot water for the household
Cooking time matters
All these make the difference between a light, fluffy delicious sponge & a lump of concrete
And the whole process can be damaged irreparably if you open the oven door at the wrong moment
So its not really a surprise to find that establishing which small part of the genome codes for which protein does not unlock the whole secret of Life. I doubt we have even got as far as listing the basic ingredients for basic cake. We seem to be more at the stage of being able to say All cakes contain flour (except for those that do not)
And then, when we do get there, along will come the VAT inspector to tell us that what we have made is not a cake. Because, from his point of view, from where he stands, it is a biscuit
The press reported that Marks&Spencer have just won a longstanding legal battle with the VATMAN. Chocolate teacakes are cakes, not biscuits
