Why it works: Cinnamon and almond match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and 3,514 recipes mention both. Both carry eucalyptol, which smells eucalyptus, herbal. The science ↓
Blanc Mange, A-LA-francaise
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the almond milk
Blanch the almonds and pound them into a paste, adding ⅓ cup of cold water gradually while pounding.
Let the almond paste stand for 2 hours, then strain off the liquid.
Make the pudding
In an enamelled saucepan, combine the milk, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla, and boil slowly until the sugar dissolves.
Stir in the isinglass until dissolved, then strain into a basin.
Add the almond milk and cream to the mixture and stir well.
Cool the mixture, then pour it into a mold and refrigerate until firmly set, or place it on ice for 1 hour.
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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Cinnamon + almondtop 1% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together3,514 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
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Vanilla + cinnamontop 1% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together5,287 recipes
Shared aroma: 4-methoxybenzaldehyde (sweet, anise).
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Vanilla + almondtop 4% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together3,961 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
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Vanilla + milktop 5% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together19,187 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).
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Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together35,032 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Sugar and vanilla share little aroma chemistry, yet 35,032 recipes mention both: they likely 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
- Isinglass
- Sets the liquid into a firm, tender gel as it cools.
- Sweet almonds
- Provide the main almond flavor and body of the almond milk.
- Whole milk
- Forms the liquid base that the pudding sets in.
- Rich cream
- Adds fat for a richer, smoother texture.
- Loaf sugar
- Sweetens the pudding and dissolves into the hot milk.
The step that matters
Dissolving the isinglass. Isinglass must be fully dissolved in the hot milk before straining and cooling, because any undissolved granules will leave lumps and uneven setting in the gel.
“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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