Why it works: Milk and egg are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 18% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 88,785 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
Creams and Custards
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the eggs
Do not beat eggs in tin; use stone or earthenware to avoid chemical influence.
Beat eggs quickly and sharply, separating whites and yolks.
Strain the yolks through a small wire strainer after beating.
Make the custard
Combine four eggs, one cup sugar, and a small half teaspoon salt with each quart of milk.
If using peach leaves, boil them in the milk and remove before adding other ingredients.
For boiled custards, place milk in a pan set within a kettle of boiling water.
When the milk boils, indicated by a slight foam, add sugar to cool it so eggs won't curdle.
Stir constantly for a few moments until it thickens slightly, but not curdle; then plunge the pan into cold water or transfer to a cold dish.
Allow ten or fifteen minutes of boiling for a quart of custard; add flavoring after removing from the stove.
Keep close attention until the custard is finished.
Bake
Bake the mixture in a baking dish until firm in the center, using moderate heat to prevent whey formation.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 4 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 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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Milk + eggtop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together88,785 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Sugar + milktop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together77,875 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Sugar and milk barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 77,875 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
- Egg proteins set on heating, thickening the custard into a smooth, sliceable mixture.
- Milk
- Forms the liquid base that the egg proteins thicken into custard.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps cool the hot milk so the eggs are less likely to curdle.
The step that matters
Stirring while the custard thickens. Egg proteins set at higher temperatures and can curdle if heated too fast or too long. Constant stirring and gentle heat keep the custard smooth and thick.
“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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