Why it works: Nutmeg and cinnamon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 11,917 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓
To Make Syllabub
Ingredients
Directions
Make the syllabub
In a bowl, combine the wine, grated nutmeg, and plenty of pounded sugar.
Optionally, add a little brandy to the wine before mixing in the milk.
Froth the milk and add it to the wine mixture.
If desired, top with clotted cream, pounded cinnamon, or nutmeg and sugar.
Variation
For a variation, substitute cider for the wine and always add brandy.
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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Nutmeg + cinnamontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together11,917 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Sherry + brandytop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,209 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
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Sugar + creamtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Milk + cinnamontop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together12,655 recipes
Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).
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Sugar + cinnamontop 10% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together30,779 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Sugar and cinnamon barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 30,779 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
- Sherry or white wine
- Provides the acidity and liquid base that thickens and flavours the drink.
- Milk
- Frothed milk adds lightness and body when combined with the wine.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the drink and balances the acidity of the wine.
- Nutmeg
- Adds warm aromatic flavour to the wine and milk mixture.
The step that matters
Adding the milk to the wine. Wine is acidic, so milk added to it can curdle if poured in carelessly. Frothing the milk first and adding it gradually helps it blend smoothly into the mixture.
“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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