Why it works: Egg and nutmeg are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 17% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 24,744 recipes. Both carry acetic acid, which smells sour, vinegar. The science ↓
Miss Schuyler, New York
Ingredients
Directions
Mix the batter
Combine a cup of white sugar, ½ lb. suet chopped very fine, 1 lb. dried bread crumbs, 6 eggs (yolks and whites beaten separately), allspice, a little cloves, cinnamon, 1 nutmeg, 1 pt. milk, 1 lb. currants, 1 lb. dried raisins, ¼ lb. citron well dredged with flour, 1 tsp. baking powder, and add the whites of eggs last.
Boil
Boil between 4 and 5 hours.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 3 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Nutmeg | 1 tsp ground (2.2g) | 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.
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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
- Eggs
- Beaten yolks and whites add structure and binding, and the whites help lift the batter.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas during cooking, helping the cake rise and turn lighter in texture.
- Suet (in the method)
- Adds fat that keeps the cake moist and tender as it cooks.
The step that matters
Adding the egg whites last. Beaten egg whites hold air that helps lift the batter. Folding them in at the end, rather than early, keeps that air from being knocked out, so the cake stays lighter.
“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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