Why it works: Sugar and lemon are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 18% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 53,532 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
Frozen Strawberries
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Mash one quart of berries.
Add the juice of two lemons and one pound of sugar.
Stir until the sugar is dissolved.
Cover and set aside for an hour.
Freeze
Add one quart of water.
Put into the freezer and freeze gradually until almost frozen, then turn rapidly.
Serve with whipped cream.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 2 of 3 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 2 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Lemon | juice of 1 lemon (48ml) | 12 |
| 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.
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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Sugar + lemontop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together53,532 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Sugar and lemon barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 53,532 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
- Berries
- Provide the main strawberry flavor and fruit body of the frozen dessert.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the mixture and lowers its freezing point, keeping the ice crystals softer.
- Lemons
- Add acidity that brightens the sweetness and sharpens the fruit flavor.
- Water
- Adds liquid that freezes into ice, giving the dessert its icy texture.
The step that matters
Freeze gradually, then turn rapidly. Freezing slowly lets large ice crystals form, which makes the texture coarse. Stirring vigorously once it is almost frozen breaks up crystals and gives a smoother, finer result.
“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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