Why it works: Flour and almond are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 8,673 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Paradise Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
Make the custard base
Melt two and a half ounces of butter in a saucepan.
Stir into it a quarter of a pound of sifted flour and a cup and a half of cream or rich milk.
Let it cook until it no longer sticks to the side of the pan.
Remove from the fire and let it cool.
Stir in an ounce and a half of sugar, three heaping tablespoonfuls of almonds blanched and chopped, and a little vanilla to flavor.
Mix in five well beaten eggs, a little at a time.
Bake and serve
Turn the mixture into a well buttered mould sprinkled with dried and sifted bread crumbs.
Set the mould in a pan of hot water in the oven.
Cover to prevent browning and bake about three-quarters of an hour.
Serve hot with a wine or fruit sauce.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 4 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Almond | 1 almond (1.2g) | 7 |
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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Flour + almondtop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,673 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Butter + almondtop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,245 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-pentanedione (butter, sweet).
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Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + eggtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Butter and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 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
- Flour
- Cooked with butter and liquid, it thickens the base so the pudding holds its shape.
- Eggs
- Set during baking, giving the pudding its structure and a firm, custard-like body.
- Butter
- Enriches the base and adds richness and flavor to the finished pudding.
- Cream or rich milk (in the method)
- Provides moisture and richness, making the batter tender as it bakes.
- Almonds
- Add nutty flavor and a pleasant texture to the pudding.
The step that matters
Let the flour paste cook until it no longer sticks to the pan. Cooking the flour and butter drives off raw starch taste and thickens the base. Undercooked paste stays loose and gives a pasty, floury result after baking.
“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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