Why it works: Sugar and chocolate are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 13% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 15,404 recipes. Both carry guaiacol, which smells smoky, sweet. The science ↓
Chocolate Blanc Mange
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Soak half a box of gelatine in a cupful of water for an hour.
Rub half a cupful of grated chocolate smooth in a little milk.
Make the mousse
Boil two cupfuls of milk, then add the gelatine and chocolate and one cupful of sugar; boil all together eight or ten minutes.
Remove from the fire, and when nearly cold beat into this the whipped whites of three eggs, flavored with vanilla.
Chill and serve
Serve cold with custard made of the yolks, or sugar and cream.
Set the molds in a cold place.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Chocolate | 1 oz (28g) semisweet | 155 |
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| 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.
-
Sugar + chocolatetop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together15,404 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
-
Milk + chocolatetop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,128 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).
-
Milk + eggtop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together88,785 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
-
Milk + sugartop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together77,875 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
-
Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Milk and sugar 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
- Whipped whites trap air, giving the mousse its light, airy texture.
- Gelatine (in the method)
- Sets as it cools, giving the mousse its firm, sliceable body.
- Chocolate
- Supplies the main chocolate flavor and color of the mousse.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness that balances the bitterness of the chocolate.
- Milk
- Forms the liquid base that carries the chocolate and gelatine.
The step that matters
Folding in the whites when nearly cold. If the base is still hot, the whipped whites lose air and deflate; if it is too cold, the gelatine begins to set in lumps before the foam is evenly mixed in.
“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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