Why it works: Brandy and orange are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,706 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
Fruit Salad
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the fruit
Combine pineapple, oranges, bananas, white grapes (seeded and peeled), and peaches in a bowl.
Squeeze the juice of 2 large oranges into the bowl.
Add ½ pound of powdered sugar, ½ pint of Maraschino, 1 gill of brandy, and 3 tablespoons of cracked ice. Mix well and pour over fruit.
Add the cream
Beat a quart of fresh cream stiff, add sugar and Maraschino, 1 gill. Mix gently.
Place the cream in the center of the fruit mixture and add a few grapes.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 2 of 3 ingredients. The other 1 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Orange | 1 medium (131g) | 62 |
| Cream | 1 tbsp (15ml) heavy | 51 |
| Brandy | 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.
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Brandy + orangetop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,706 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
-
Brandy + creamtop 16% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,635 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-heptanol (bitter, floral).
-
Cream + orangetop 28% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,170 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Fresh cream
- Whipped into a stiff foam, it adds richness and a light, airy body to the salad.
- Brandy
- Adds a warm, aromatic flavour that carries through the soaked fruit.
- Powdered sugar (in the method)
- Adds sweetness and dissolves easily into the fruit juices.
- Oranges
- Their juice adds moisture and a bright acidity that balances the sweetness.
- Maraschino (in the method)
- Adds a sweet, cherry-like aroma and flavour to both the fruit and the cream.
The step that matters
Mix the cream gently. Stiffly beaten cream is a foam of trapped air. Vigorous stirring knocks that air out, so the cream turns loose and watery and loses its shape.
Swap the orange
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (brandy, cream):
- Vanillafits better
- Strawberryfits better
- Apricotfits better
- Orangethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against brandy, cream. 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.
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