Name: Miss Hattie Bell
Ingredients: two quarts of sweet milk; one pound of raisins; six large boston crackers; six eggs

Why it works: Milk and raisin are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 7,155 recipes. Both carry decanoic acid, which smells acides aroma. The science ↓

Miss Hattie Bell

Ingredients

two quarts of sweet milk
one pound of raisins
six large boston crackers
six eggs

Directions

Mix six large Boston crackers, two quarts of sweet milk, six eggs, a teacupful of sugar, a little cinnamon, and nutmeg.
Add one pound of raisins.
Bake the pudding for an hour.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

744Calories

28 gProtein

15 gFat

124 gCarbs

What these numbers assume: 4 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Milk	1 cup (244ml) whole	149
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Grape	1/2 cup (76g)	62

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By Keokuk (Iowa). Westminster Presbyterian church. Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

Milk + raisintop 15% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together7,155 recipes

Shared aroma: decanoic acid (acides aroma).
Milk + eggtop 18% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together88,785 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Raisin + eggtop 23% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together9,556 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: Set the custard so the pudding holds its shape when baked.
Sweet milk: Provides the liquid base that becomes the custard's moisture and body.
Boston crackers: Soak up the milk and egg mixture, giving the pudding its soft, bread-like body.
Raisins: Add sweetness and chewy pockets of fruit throughout the pudding.