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Pineapple Cream in a Mould

A pineapple custard set in a mould using isinglass and thick cream.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 6 ingredients
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Why it works: Sugar and cream are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 9% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 43,450 recipes. Both carry 2,3-butanedione, which smells butter, sweet. The science ↓

Pineapple Cream in a Mould

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the pineapple

  1. Peel the pineapple, remove the eyes, and cut the pulp into dice using a silver knife.

  2. Sprinkle the diced pineapple with sugar and brandy.

  3. Let the pineapple soak for 2 hours.

  4. Simmer the pineapple peel in water for 1 hour.

  5. Strain the liquid and let it cool.

Make the custard

  1. Return the liquid to the saucepan.

  2. Add the diced pineapple and sugar.

  3. Boil gently for 15 minutes.

  4. Skim the mixture.

  5. Add the isinglass.

  6. Boil for an additional 10 minutes.

  7. Pour the mixture into a bowl.

  8. Mix in the thick cream.

  9. Whisk until it begins to thicken.

Set and serve

  1. Pour the mixture into a mould.

  2. Set the mould on ice.

  3. Stir for a few minutes to prevent the fruit from sinking.

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 + creamtop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together43,450 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).

  2. Pineapple + brandytop 12% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together298 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).

  3. Brandy + creamtop 16% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together2,635 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-heptanol (bitter, floral).

  4. Pineapple + sugartop 19% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together4,841 recipes

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

  5. Sugar + brandytop 19% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together11,939 recipes

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

Sugar and brandy barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 11,939 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

Pineapple
Provides the main fruit flavour and the diced pieces that give the set custard its texture.
Isinglass
A gelatin-like setting agent that firms the liquid so it holds its shape when chilled.
Thick cream
Adds fat and richness, giving the custard a smooth, creamy body.
Loaf sugar
Sweetens the dish and draws flavour out of the pineapple during soaking.

The step that matters

Stir while the mould chills. Diced fruit is denser than the liquid and sinks as the mixture sets. Stirring while it begins to thicken keeps the pieces suspended so they are spread evenly through the finished custard.

Swap the pineapple

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

  1. Vanillafits better
  2. Apricotfits better
  3. Strawberryfits better
  4. Pineapplethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, brandy, cream. 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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