Why it works: Orange and lemon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 10,634 recipes. Both carry 3-hexenal, which smells apple, fruity. The science ↓
Fruit Salad
Ingredients
Directions
Make the mixture
Combine pineapple, oranges, bananas, candied cherries, and gelatin dissolved in half pint cold water.
Add one pint sugar and juice of two lemons to one and one-half pints hot water, strain, and pour into the dissolved gelatin.
Set
When cool, pour over fruit and set in cold place to congeal.
Make the day before using.
Serve
Serve with whipped cream.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 5 of 6 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 5 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Banana | 1 medium (118g) | 105 |
| Cherry | 1 cup (138g) | 87 |
| Orange | 1 medium (131g) | 62 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Lemon | juice of 1 lemon (48ml) | 12 |
| 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.
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.
-
Orange + lemontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together10,634 recipes
Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
-
Orange + bananatop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,118 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
-
Banana + lemontop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,134 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).
-
Sugar + lemontop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together53,532 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
-
Sugar + bananatop 19% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,102 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-penten-3-one (fish, pungent).
Sugar and lemon barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 53,532 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
- Gelatine
- Sets the liquid into a firm, sliceable base that holds the fruit in place.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and balances the tartness of the citrus.
- Lemons
- Add acidity and a bright flavour that cuts the sweetness.
- Oranges
- Contribute juice, aroma and soft fruit pieces to the set mass.
- Bananas
- Add soft texture and sweetness to the fruit layer.
The step that matters
Pour the cooled liquid over the fruit. If the gelatine mixture is still hot, it can soften the fruit and set unevenly; if it is already firm, it will not spread through the fruit. Pouring it when just cool lets it settle around the pieces as it sets.
Swap the banana
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, orange, lemon):
- Limefits better
- Vanillafits better
- Blueberryfits better
- Bananathe original
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, orange, lemon. 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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