Why it works: Egg and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 21% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 122,807 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
Cocoa Pyramids
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a moderate oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the mixture
In a saucepan, combine grated coconut, egg whites, and powdered sugar.
Stir over low heat until the mixture becomes sticky.
Remove from heat and let it cool.
Shape and bake
Roll the mixture into pyramid shapes, about 2 inches long.
Place on greased and floured baking pans.
Bake in a moderate oven at 350°F (175°C) until the tops are brown.
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.
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 + sugartop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
-
Coconut + sugartop 22% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together5,742 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-penten-3-one (fish, pungent).
-
Coconut + eggtop 28% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,090 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Grated coconut
- Provides the bulk and chewy texture of the pyramids.
- Egg whites
- Bind the coconut together and help the pyramids hold their shape.
- Powdered sugar
- Sweetens the mixture and helps it turn sticky when heated.
The step that matters
Stir over low heat until sticky. Low heat lets the egg whites and sugar thicken gradually without scorching or cooking the eggs too hard. Too much heat can brown or toughen the mixture before it binds.
Swap the coconut
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (egg, sugar):
- Vanillafits better
- Raisinfits better
- Lemonfits better
- Coconutthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against egg, sugar. 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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