Why it works: Bread and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 11,466 recipes. Both carry 2-undecenal, which smells sweet. The science ↓
Cora Chase, Rosemond, Ill
Ingredients
Directions
Make the base
Take one pint of fine bread crumbs.
Pour one quart of sweet milk over the bread crumbs.
Stir in the yolks of five eggs, one cup of sugar, a half teacup of suet (chopped fine), and one cup of raisins.
Flavor with lemon.
Bake the mixture.
Top and finish
When cool, spread over a layer of jelly or preserve.
Beat the whites of five eggs very light.
Add five teaspoons sugar, flavor with vanilla, put the mixture upon the pudding, and brown slightly.
Serve with cream sweetened and flavored.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 5 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 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
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.
-
Bread + milktop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together11,466 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).
-
Sugar + raisintop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together12,481 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
-
Bread + eggtop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together22,662 recipes
Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).
-
Milk + raisintop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,155 recipes
Shared aroma: decanoic acid (acides aroma).
-
Bread + raisintop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,111 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
- Bread crumbs
- Form the bulk of the pudding and soak up the milk to hold its structure.
- Milk
- Supplies the liquid that softens the crumbs and sets into a custard when baked.
- Eggs
- Yolks enrich and bind the custard, while beaten whites lighten the topping.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps the topping brown lightly in the oven.
- Raisins
- Add pockets of chewy sweetness scattered through the custard.
- Suet
- Adds fat that gives the custard richness and a tender texture.
The step that matters
Let the pudding cool before spreading the jelly. Spreading jelly or preserve over a hot pudding melts it and makes the layer slide. Cooling lets the custard firm so the layer stays in place.
Swap the raisin
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (bread, milk, sugar, egg):
- Vanillafits better
- Figfits better
- Datesfits about as well
- Raisinthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against bread, milk, 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.
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