Why it works: Vanilla and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 35,032 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
Cream Candy
Ingredients
Directions
Cook the sugar
Combine one coffee cup of white sugar with one or two tablespoonfuls of water, enough to dissolve nicely as it heats.
Boil without stirring in a bright tin pan until it will crisp in water, like molasses candy.
Just before it is done, add a tablespoonful of extract of vanilla and a quarter tablespoonful of cream of tartar.
Work and shape
Pour the mixture into a buttered pan; when cool enough to handle, work it as you would molasses candy until it is perfectly white.
Stretch and lay the candy on a marble slab, or if you must use a molding board, place buttered paper over it and cut into mouthfuls with a chopping knife.
Continue working until the candy creams; if it grains before it is done, return it to the pan, pour water on it, and boil again.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 3 of 4 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 3 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Cream | 1 tbsp (15ml) heavy | 51 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Vanilla | 1 tsp extract (4ml) | 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.
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.
-
Vanilla + sugartop 8% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together35,032 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
-
Vanilla + creamtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together12,301 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonanone (fruity, floral).
Vanilla and sugar barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 35,032 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
- White sugar
- Provides sweetness and forms the crystal structure that gives the candy its body.
- Cream of tartar
- Adds acidity that helps keep sugar crystals small, producing a smoother, creamier texture.
- Extract of vanilla
- Adds aroma and flavor to the finished candy.
The step that matters
Boil without stirring. Stirring the syrup while it cooks can trigger sugar crystals to form early, causing a grainy rather than smooth candy. Letting it boil undisturbed keeps the sugar dissolved until it reaches the right concentration.
“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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