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Dessert

Cheese Pie, or Kuchen

A baked cheese pie with butter, eggs, lemon rind, sugar, cream, vanilla, cornstarch, and lemon juice.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
By New Orleans Federation of Clubs · From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 3 ingredients
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Why it works: Butter and lemon are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 16% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 41,227 recipes. Both carry 3-hexenal, which smells apple, fruity. The science ↓

Cheese Pie, or Kuchen

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the filling

  1. Melt two tablespoons butter and add to cheese.

  2. Take 1 pint cheese, press dry and put through a colander.

  3. Add 1 cup sugar.

  4. Add 1 cup cream, beaten stiff.

  5. Add lemon rind or vanilla.

  6. Beat 3 eggs separately.

  7. Add 1 heaping tablespoonful cornstarch.

  8. Add juice of 1 lemon.

  9. Mix well.

Bake

  1. Bake on cookie dough, or Kuchen dough, until golden brown and well set in a moderate oven for 1 hour.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

192Calories
7 gProtein
17 gFat
4 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 3 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Butter1 tbsp (14g)102
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Lemonjuice of 1 lemon (48ml)12

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

By New Orleans Federation of Clubs. 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.

  1. Butter + lemontop 16% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together41,227 recipes

    Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

  2. Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together118,967 recipes

    Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).

  3. Egg + lemontop 19% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together44,316 recipes

    Shared aroma: (e,e)-2,4-decadienal (fatty, deep fried).

Egg and lemon barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 44,316 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

Cheese (in the method)
Forms the body of the filling, giving the pie its dense, creamy structure.
Eggs
Set when baked, binding the filling and giving it structure.
Cream (in the method)
Adds richness and a light, airy texture to the filling.
Cornstarch (in the method)
Thickens the filling so it holds its shape when set.
Sugar (in the method)
Sweetens the filling and balances the acidity of the lemon.
Lemon juice
Adds acidity that brightens the flavor of the rich cheese filling.

The step that matters

Bake until well set. Eggs and cornstarch set as the filling heats, so underbaking leaves it runny, while the crust must turn golden brown. Judge doneness by a firm, set centre rather than by time alone.

Swap the lemon

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, egg):

  1. Lemonthe original
  2. Vanillafits about as well
  3. Coconutfits about as well
  4. Raspberryfits less well

Fit is the average pairing score against butter, 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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