Why it works: Milk and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 81,283 recipes. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
Cocoanut Pie
Ingredients
Directions
Make the filling
Mix one cup grated coconut with two teaspoons flour.
Add one cup milk or water, place on stove, and stir until thickens.
Add one tablespoon butter while warm.
When cool, add a little salt, yolks of two eggs, one small cup of sugar, add the coconut, beating all together.
Bake and top
Fill the crust and bake.
Beat the egg whites with three tablespoons powdered sugar.
Spread the beaten whites on top of the pie.
Return the pie to the oven and brown slightly.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 6 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| 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.
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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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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Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Flour + buttertop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Flour + milktop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Flour + sugartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
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Flour + eggtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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
- Thickens the milk mixture so the filling sets into a sliceable custard.
- Eggs
- Yolks enrich and set the filling; whites whipped with sugar form a browned meringue topping.
- Milk
- Forms the liquid base of the custard that thickens on the stove.
- Grated coconut
- Adds coconut flavor and chewy texture to the filling.
- Butter
- Adds richness and a smooth, tender mouthfeel to the filling.
The step that matters
Thickening the milk mixture on the stove. Flour needs to be stirred continuously over heat until the mixture thickens; starch only swells and thickens fully when heated, and stopping too early leaves a runny filling that will not set properly after baking.
“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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