Why it works: Milk and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 81,283 recipes. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
Farina Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
Make the paste
Boil one cupful of water.
While boiling, sift in farina until a thick paste forms.
Remove from heat and stir a few moments quickly.
Add one tablespoonful of hard butter, two eggs, and a little nutmeg.
Bake
Butter the dish.
Pour the mixture into the dish with two cupfuls of milk.
Bake until done.
Serve
Serve cold with cream.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 4 of 5 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 4 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Nutmeg | 1 tsp ground (2.2g) | 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.
-
Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Milk + nutmegtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together14,685 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
-
Butter + nutmegtop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together24,377 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
-
Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
-
Egg + nutmegtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together24,744 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
Egg and nutmeg barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 24,744 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
- Farina (in the method)
- Thickens the mixture into a paste as its starch swells and sets when heated.
- Eggs
- Bind the pudding and help it set into a firm, custard-like texture.
- Milk
- Adds moisture and softness, and its sugars and proteins contribute to browning.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richness and a smoother, more tender texture.
The step that matters
Sifting the farina into boiling water. Adding farina slowly while stirring disperses the starch granules evenly. Dumped in at once, they clump, leaving lumps that never fully smooth out.
Swap the nutmeg
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, butter, egg):
- Nutmegthe original
- Cinnamonfits about as well
- Parsleyfits less well
- Tarragonfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against milk, 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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