Why it works: Sugar and egg are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 21% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 122,807 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
Guava Snow with Custard Sauce
Ingredients
Directions
Make the guava snow
Boil sugar and water.
Dissolve cornstarch in cold water and add, stirring constantly.
When the mixture thickens, remove from heat and add guava pulp.
Beat this into egg whites that have been previously whipped stiff.
Heap the mixture into a glass serving dish and place on ice.
Make the custard sauce
For custard sauce, heat 1 e milk, 2 tbsp sugar, and beaten yolks of eggs.
Do not boil, but steam until it coats a knife blade.
Serve
Pour the custard sauce around the snow when it is served.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 2 of 4 ingredients. The other 2 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 2 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Water | not in our table | 0 |
| Guava | 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.
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. See the original page.
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.
-
Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
-
Sugar + guavatop 26% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together115 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-penten-3-one (fish, pungent).
-
Egg + guavatop 33% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together38 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Eggs
- Whipped whites give the snow its light, airy structure, while yolks enrich the custard.
- Guava pulp
- Adds the main fruit flavor and tartness to the snow.
- Cornstarch (in the method)
- Thickens the boiled sugar mixture so it can hold its shape when folded in.
- Sugar
- Sweetens both the snow and the custard sauce.
- Milk (in the method)
- Forms the creamy body of the custard sauce.
The step that matters
Heat the custard without boiling. Egg yolks thicken gently at moderate heat. If the custard boils, the proteins tighten and curdle, leaving a grainy sauce instead of a smooth one that coats a knife blade.
Swap the guava
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, egg):
- Vanillafits better
- Raisinfits better
- Lemonfits better
- Guavathe original
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, egg. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“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.
You might also like
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.
White Cake431 recipes
Pound Cake373 recipes
Orange Bundt Cake349 recipes
Spice Cake344 recipes