Why it works: Milk and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 81,283 recipes. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
Almond Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the almonds
Boil water and pour it over the almonds; let sit until the skins come off easily.
Rub the almonds with a dry cloth, then pound them finely with the rose water.
Make the filling
Beat the eggs to a stiff froth and mix in the sugar.
Combine the egg mixture with the milk, crushed crackers, melted butter, and citron.
Add the pounded almonds and stir everything together.
Bake and serve
Pour the mixture into a small pudding dish lined with pastry.
Bake in a preheated oven at 400°F (200°C) for 30 minutes.
Serve cold for the best flavor.
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.
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Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Almond + buttertop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,245 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-pentanedione (butter, sweet).
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Almond + rosetop 11% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,465 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
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Almond + milktop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,800 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
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Egg + buttertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 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
- Sweet almonds
- Provide the main flavor and body of the pudding filling.
- Eggs
- Whipped to a stiff froth, they add structure and help the pudding set when baked.
- Milk
- Adds moisture and creaminess, giving the custard-like texture.
- Melted butter
- Adds richness and fat, softening the texture of the filling.
- Crushed crackers
- Help thicken the filling and give it body.
The step that matters
Beating the eggs to a stiff froth. Whipped eggs trap air that gives the filling lift and a light texture. If they are under-beaten or deflated when the other ingredients are stirred in, the pudding will be denser and less airy after baking.
“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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