Why it works: Flour and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 12% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 124,287 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Cream Puffs I
Ingredients
Directions
Make the dough
Add the salt and butter to the water.
Bring to a boil, then add the flour all at once, stirring constantly until the mixture leaves the side of the pan.
Remove from the fire and add the beaten eggs, one at a time, beating continually.
Bake and fill
Drop spoonfuls of dough onto a buttered pan, about two inches apart.
Bake in a moderate oven for twenty-five minutes.
When cool, cut the top or side with a sharp knife and fill with cream using a pastry tube.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 4 of 5 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 4 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
| Water | not in our table | 0 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.
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.
-
Flour + buttertop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Flour + eggtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Flour and butter barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 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
- Flour
- Starch that cooks into the dough and gives the puffs their structure.
- Eggs
- Add structure and moisture, and help the puffs rise and set as they bake.
- Butter
- Adds fat and richness, and tenderness to the dough.
- Water
- Boiled with the butter to make the liquid base that the flour cooks into.
The step that matters
Beating in the eggs one at a time. Each egg must be fully absorbed before the next is added. Adding them too fast can leave the dough too loose to hold its shape or rise properly in the oven.
“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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