Name: Baked Eggs with Tomatoes, Herbs and Cream
Ingredients: 2 tsp. unsalted butter, plus more for ramekins; 2 or 3 tomatoes, chopped; 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil; 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley; 1 tsp. salt; 1 tsp. freshly ground pepper; 4 eggs; 4 tsp. heavy cream; 4 tsp. grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (optional)

Why it works: Tomato and basil are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,979 recipes. Both carry 3-hexenal, which smells apple, fruity. The science ↓

Baked Eggs with Tomatoes, Herbs and Cream

Ingredients

2 tsp. unsalted butter, plus more for ramekins
2 or 3 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. freshly ground pepper
4 eggs
4 tsp. heavy cream
4 tsp. grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (optional)

Directions

Step-by-step directions aren't available for this recipe. See the full recipe at the source →

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

374Calories

15 gProtein

32 gFat

8 gCarbs

What these numbers assume: 9 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Cheese	1 oz (28g) cheddar	113
Butter	1 tbsp (14g)	102
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Cream	1 tbsp (15ml) heavy	51
Tomato	1 medium (123g)	22
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Basil	5 leaves fresh (2.5g)	1
Parsley	1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g)	1
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By williamssonoma. Recipe from Open Recipes.

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.

Tomato + basiltop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,979 recipes

Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
Basil + parsleytop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together2,351 recipes

Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).
Parsley + peppertop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together34,122 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Basil + peppertop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together5,294 recipes

Shared aroma: methyl cinnamate (strawberry).
Tomato + peppertop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together17,923 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

Swap the tomato

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, basil, parsley, pepper, egg, cream, cheese):

Capsicumfits better
Potatofits about as well
Spinachfits about as well
Tomatothe original

Fit is the average pairing score against butter, basil, parsley, pepper, egg, cream, cheese. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

Like knowing why a recipe works?

The 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.