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 ↓
Croquenbouche of Macaroons
Ingredients
Directions
Build the shell
Oil the outside of a dome-shaped mold.
Beginning at the bottom, cover the mold with macaroons, sticking the edges together with sugar boiled to the crack or with royal icing.
Just before serving, turn the croquembouche off the mold and place it over a form of plain or fruit Bavarian cream that has been hardened in a smaller mold of the same shape, leaving at least an inch of space between the two layers.
(Optional) A croquembouche can also be made of little cakes cut from a layer cake with a small biscuit cutter, iced in two colors with royal icing, or with glace oranges, or with chestnuts.
Whip the cream
To make whipped cream, dilute one half pint of double or very rich cream with one half pint of regular cream to make one pint of cream.
Place the cream on ice for several hours before whipping.
Ensure the cream is very cold; if not below 60°F it will turn to butter.
Place the bowl of cream in a larger bowl with cracked ice.
Whip the cream with a churn, Dover beater, or wire whip until a stiff froth forms; continue whipping until fully inflated.
If a lighter, frothy cream is desired, dilute more and remove froth from the top while whipping, draining it through a fine sieve.
Add flavoring and sweetening after whipping for the first method; add before whipping for the second method.
Drain the whipped cream and add only when mixtures are cold and ready to be molded or frozen.
Use whipped cream lightly, not stirred, to give sponge-like texture.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
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 |
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.
-
Vanilla + sugartop 8% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together35,032 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
-
Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
-
Cream + vanillatop 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
- Macaroons (in the method)
- Form the crisp outer shell that holds the croquembouche together.
- Sugar
- Boiled to the crack, it glues the macaroons together as a firm, brittle joint.
- Double cream
- Its high fat content gives the whipped cream richness and a stable, thick structure.
- Cream
- Its fat traps air when whipped, creating the light, stiff froth.
The step that matters
Keep the cream very cold before whipping. Cold cream holds its fat globules firm enough to trap air, forming a stable froth. Warm cream whips poorly and can over-whip into butter, which ruins the filling.
“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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