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Blancmange of Cedrats

A layered almond blancmange flavored with cedrat rind and sugar.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 5 ingredients
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Why it works: Sugar and almond are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 18% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 15,679 recipes. Both carry 1-penten-3-one, which smells fish, pungent. The science ↓

Blancmange of Cedrats

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the flavoring

  1. Grate the rind of a cedrat.

  2. Mix the grated rind with 6 ounces of sugar until dissolved.

Make the almond milk

  1. Blanch the almonds.

  2. Pound the blanched almonds, moistening them with water until smooth.

  3. Dilute the almond paste with 5 cups of water.

  4. Strain the mixture to extract almond milk.

  5. Divide the almond milk into two equal parts.

Set the layers

  1. Mix one part with the cedrat sugar mixture.

  2. Mix the other part with plain sugar.

  3. Add 1 ounce of isinglass to each mixture.

  4. Stir each mixture until dissolved.

  5. Place a mold in ice.

  6. Pour the white mixture into the mold to a depth of ¾ inch.

  7. Once the white mixture sets, pour the yellow mixture into the mold.

  8. Alternate layers until the mold is full.

  9. Turn out the blancmange as directed.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

  1. Sugar + almondtop 18% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together15,679 recipes

    Shared aroma: 1-penten-3-one (fish, pungent).

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

What each ingredient does

Sweet almonds
Form the almond milk that gives the blancmange its body and creamy flavor.
Isinglass
Gelatin-like setting agent that firms the almond milk into a sliceable layer.
Sugar
Sweetens the layers and dissolves into the cedrat and almond mixtures.
Water
Dilutes the almond paste so it can be strained into a smooth almond milk.

The step that matters

Adding the isinglass and letting each layer set. Isinglass must be fully dissolved before the mixtures cool, and each layer needs to set before the next is poured. Pouring too early lets the colors blend and the layers fail to hold their shape.

“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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