Why it works: Sugar and vanilla are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 35,032 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
Meringue Custard Tartlets
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
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Butter deep individual pie-tins or fluted tartlet pans, about 6 inches in diameter and 2-3 inches deep.
Line the pans with puff pastry.
Make the custard
In a bowl, gradually stir the flour and salt into the beaten yolks of the eggs.
Add the cream and stir until free from lumps.
Stir in the sugar and cook over medium heat until the custard coats the back of a spoon, without boiling.
Pour the custard into a bowl, add vanilla extract, and stir until cold.
Fill the lined molds with the custard and bake in the preheated oven.
Make the meringue and finish
In a clean bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form.
Gradually sprinkle in the sugar and a dash of salt while continuing to beat until firm.
Spread a thin layer of meringue over the tart and decorate with the remaining meringue using a piping bag.
Sprinkle powdered sugar on top and return to the oven until lightly golden.
Remove from the oven and let cool before serving.
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.
-
Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together35,032 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
-
Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
-
Flour + vanillatop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together19,241 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Flour + sugartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
-
Cream + vanillatop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together12,301 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonanone (fruity, floral).
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
- Eggs
- Yolks thicken the custard; whites whip into the meringue topping.
- All-purpose flour
- Starch thickens the custard as it cooks.
- Heavy cream
- Adds fat and richness for a smooth, soft custard.
- Granulated sugar
- Sweetens the custard and helps stabilize the meringue.
- Puff pastry
- Forms a crisp, flaky shell that holds the custard.
The step that matters
Cook the custard without boiling. Egg yolks thicken gently with heat. If the custard boils, the yolks can scramble and turn grainy, so stop cooking once it coats the back of a spoon.
Swap the vanilla
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (egg, flour, cream, sugar):
- Raisinfits about as well
- Vanillathe original
- Figfits less well
- Strawberryfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against egg, flour, cream, sugar. 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.
You might also like
Vanilla Ice Cream108 recipes
White Cake431 recipes
Pound Cake373 recipes
Orange Bundt Cake349 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.