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Cambridge Milk Punch

A chilled punch made with milk, lemon rind, sugar, eggs, rum, and brandy.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
By Eliza Acton · From a historical cookbook (Project Gutenberg) · 11 ingredients
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Cambridge Milk Punch

Why it works: Rum and brandy are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,058 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓

Cambridge Milk Punch

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare and heat

  1. Throw into two quarts of new milk the very thinly-pared rind of a fine lemon, and half a pound of good sugar in lumps.

  2. Bring it slowly to boil.

  3. Take out the lemon rind.

Thicken the milk

  1. Draw it from the fire.

  2. Stir quickly in a couple of well-whisked eggs which have been mixed with less than half a pint of cold milk, and strain through a sieve.

  3. Ensure the milk is not allowed to boil after these are mixed with it.

Finish and serve

  1. Add gradually a pint of rum, and half a pint of brandy.

  2. Mill the punch to a froth.

  3. Serve it immediately with quite warm glasses.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

320Calories
15 gProtein
13 gFat
29 gCarbs

Counts 5 of 6 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 5 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Milk1 cup (244ml) whole149
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Rum1/2 oz (15ml)32
Lemonjuice of 1 lemon (48ml)12
Brandynot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By Eliza Acton. Recipe from a historical cookbook (Project Gutenberg).

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.

Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it

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.

  1. Rum + brandytop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,058 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

  2. Milk + rumtop 12% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together967 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl 2-methylbutyrate (fruity, apple).

  3. Sugar + rumtop 14% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together2,908 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

  4. Milk + lemontop 15% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together19,053 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

  5. Milk + brandytop 15% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together3,738 recipes

    Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Milk
Forms the creamy base that carries the other flavors and gives the punch its body.
Eggs
Thicken and enrich the milk when gently heated, giving a smooth, velvety texture.
Sugar
Adds sweetness and balances the sharpness of the lemon and alcohol.
Rum
Adds alcohol, warmth and a distinctive aroma to the punch.
Brandy
Adds alcohol, fruity depth and aroma to the punch.
Lemon rind
Infuses citrus oils into the milk, adding bright aroma and flavor.

The step that matters

Keep the milk from boiling after adding the eggs. Egg proteins set and curdle when overheated, so the mixture can turn grainy instead of smooth and thick. Adding the eggs off the heat and keeping the milk below boiling protects the texture.

Swap the lemon

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, sugar, rum, brandy, egg):

  1. Vanillafits better
  2. Pineapplefits better
  3. Apricotfits better
  4. Lemonthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against milk, sugar, rum, brandy, 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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