Why it works: Parsley and pepper match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 34,122 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓
Cream of Tomato Soup
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the tomatoes
Cook 1 quart tomatoes (fresh or canned) with 1 pint water until done, then strain through a sieve.
Add a pinch of soda to the tomatoes before adding to the cream.
If soup stock is convenient, use it instead of water.
Make the soup
Boil 1 pint cream (or 1/2 cream and 1/2 milk); drop in finely chopped celery and parsley and season with salt and pepper.
Just before ready to serve, stir the strained tomatoes into the milk or cream, stirring constantly.
Serve immediately.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 6 of 7 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 6 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Cream | 1 tbsp (15ml) heavy | 51 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Tomato | 1 medium (123g) | 22 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Parsley | 1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g) | 1 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
| 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.
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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Parsley + peppertop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together34,122 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Tomato + peppertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together17,923 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Tomato + parsleytop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,398 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Cream + peppertop 23% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together21,449 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
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Cream + parsleytop 29% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together6,392 recipes
Shared aroma: octanal (fat, soap).
Cream and pepper barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 21,449 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
- Tomatoes
- Provide the main body, flavour and acidity of the soup.
- Cream
- Adds richness and a smooth, velvety texture to the soup.
- Baking soda
- Neutralises some tomato acidity, softening the flavour and helping keep the soup from curdling.
The step that matters
Stirring the tomatoes into the cream. Tomato acid can curdle hot dairy. Adding the tomatoes just before serving, while stirring constantly, and with the soda already added, helps the soup stay smooth.
Swap the tomato
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (cream, parsley, pepper):
- Carrotfits better
- Spinachfits better
- Potatofits better
- Tomatothe original
Fit is the average pairing score against cream, parsley, pepper. 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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