Why it works: Cream and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 41,516 recipes. Both carry delta-dodecalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓
Cream Pie
Ingredients
Directions
Make the filling
Measure 1 pint milk, 1 cup sugar, 2 eggs (yolks), and 1 tablespoon flour.
Scald the milk in a double boiler, then add the eggs and sugar.
Add butter the size of an egg, then add the flour.
Prepare the crust
Prepare a nice baked crust in a deep pie plate.
Top and bake
Beat the egg whites to a stiff froth, add 2 tablespoons sugar, put on top, and place in the oven until a delicate brown.
Add 2 tablespoons cocoa to the cream.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 6 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Chocolate | 1 oz (28g) semisweet | 155 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Cream | 1 tbsp (15ml) heavy | 51 |
| 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.
-
Cream + buttertop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
-
Sugar + creamtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
-
Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Sugar + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
-
Cocoa + buttertop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together548 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-undecalactone (coconut, creamy).
Butter and flour 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
- Eggs
- Yolks thicken the custard as their proteins set with gentle heat.
- Milk (in the method)
- Forms the liquid base of the cream and carries the other ingredients.
- Flour
- Starch thickens the custard so it holds its body when sliced.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richness and a smoother, softer texture.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the cream and helps the egg whites hold their stiff froth.
- Cocoa
- Gives the cream its chocolate flavor and deep color.
The step that matters
Adding the eggs and sugar to the hot milk. Egg yolks thicken the custard as their proteins set with gentle heat. Adding them too fast or over high heat can scramble them and leave the cream grainy. Stir steadily and keep the custard gently heated.
Swap the cocoa
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, cream, egg, butter, flour):
- Almondfits better
- Pistachiofits better
- Macadamia nutfits better
- Cocoathe original
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, cream, egg, butter, flour. 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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