Why it works: Almond and orange are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,125 recipes. Both carry 2,4-decadienal, which smells seaweed. The science ↓
Almond Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a moderate oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare
Soak the almonds in hot water until the skins slip off.
Pound the almonds with orange flower water or rose water to prevent oiling.
Mix in the crushed crackers or rice flour, eggs, cream, sugar, butter, and wine.
Line the bottom of a baking dish with pastry and garnish the edges.
Bake
Pour the almond mixture into the dish and bake in a moderate oven at 350°F (175°C) until set.
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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Almond + orangetop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,125 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
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Almond + ricetop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together1,456 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
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Cream + buttertop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Almond + buttertop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,245 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-pentanedione (butter, sweet).
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 body and nutty flavour of the pudding.
- Eggs
- Set the mixture as they cook, giving the pudding its firm structure.
- Cream
- Adds richness and moisture, producing a softer, silkier texture.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richness and a tender, smooth crumb.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the pudding and contributes to browning at the surface.
- Crushed crackers or rice flour
- Add body and help bind the mixture so it holds together when baked.
The step that matters
Pounding the almonds with orange flower water or rose water. The added liquid helps the almonds form a smooth paste and keeps their oils from separating out, which would make the pudding greasy and grainy.
Swap the orange
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (almond, rice, egg, cream, sugar, butter, wine):
- Vanillafits better
- Coconutfits better
- Figfits better
- Orangethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against almond, rice, egg, cream, sugar, butter, wine. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“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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