Why it works: Butter and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and 81,283 recipes mention both. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
Queen of Puddings
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.
Prepare
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Make the batter
Cream together the butter and sugar in a bowl.
Beat in the lemon juice and peel until the mixture is very light.
Add the beaten egg yolks, then the milk, alternating with the stiffened egg whites and flour.
Fold in the shredded coconut.
Bake and serve
Pour the mixture into small tins and bake until set.
Serve fresh, but not warm.
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 aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
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Butter + milktop 7% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Cream + buttertop 8% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
-
Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Milk + coconuttop 10% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together2,648 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
-
Butter + coconuttop 12% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together3,467 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Egg whites
- Whipped to stiff peaks, they lighten the batter and help it rise and set.
- Egg yolks
- Add richness and help bind the batter as it sets.
- Flour
- Provides structure so the pudding holds its shape once set.
- Butter
- Creamed with sugar to trap air and add tenderness and richness.
- Sugar
- Creamed with butter to add sweetness and help create a light texture.
- Shredded coconut
- Adds moisture, chew and a distinct coconut flavour.
The step that matters
Folding in the stiffened egg whites. Egg whites hold air only while whipped; overmixing or deflating them makes the pudding dense rather than light. Fold gently so the batter keeps its lift through baking.
Flavor stand-ins for the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (cream, butter, sugar, egg, milk, flour, coconut):
- Vanillabetter flavor fit
- Raisinbetter flavor fit
- Figbetter flavor fit
- Lemonthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against cream, butter, sugar, egg, milk, flour, coconut. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).
“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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