Why it works: Almond and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 18% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 15,679 recipes. Both carry 1-penten-3-one, which smells fish, pungent. The science ↓
Almond Nut Candy
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Measure equal amounts of blanched almonds and confectioner's sugar.
Make the candy
Heat the sugar over medium heat until it dissolves.
Once dissolved, add the almonds and stir rapidly.
Do not allow the sugar to boil.
Pour the mixture into buttered tins.
Press flat with a buttered knife.
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 + sugartop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together15,679 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-penten-3-one (fish, pungent).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Blanched almonds
- Form the bulk of the candy and give it a crunchy texture.
- Confectioner's sugar
- Dissolves into a syrup that binds the almonds together as the candy sets.
The step that matters
Do not allow the sugar to boil. Confectioner's sugar heated over medium heat dissolves quickly and can scorch or darken if it boils, which changes the flavor and color of the candy.
“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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