Why it works: Milk and vanilla are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 19,187 recipes. Both carry ethyl caproate, which smells fruity, apple peel. The science ↓
Hokey Pokey Bricks
Ingredients
Directions
Make the mixture
Combine gelatin and 2 quarts of milk in a double boiler, then heat until dissolved.
Mix the remaining ingredients together in a large bowl.
Stir the dissolved gelatin into the mixture, then strain the mixture.
Form and pack
Pour the mixture into quart containers to form bricks.
Cut each brick into eight slices.
Wrap each slice in 7x9 inch wax paper.
Quickly place the wrapped slices into an ice packer.
For larger quantities, use slab bricks and pack in ice and salt overnight.
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 + vanillatop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together19,187 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).
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Cream + gelatintop 7% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together1,628 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
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Sugar + gelatintop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,778 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together35,032 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Gelatin + condensed milktop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together30 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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
- Gelatin
- Sets the mixture so it holds its shape when cut into slices.
- Cream
- Adds fat for a rich, smooth texture.
- Condensed milk
- Adds sweetness and body to the mixture.
- Granulated sugar
- Sweetens the mixture and helps keep it soft when frozen.
- Milk
- Provides the liquid base that the other ingredients are combined in.
The step that matters
Quickly place the wrapped slices into an ice packer. Speed matters because the slices must stay cold and firm; warming lets the set mixture soften and lose its shape before it is packed in ice.
“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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