Why it works: Vanilla and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 35,032 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
New York Ice Cream
Ingredients
Directions
Make the custard
Heat the cream slowly in a farina kettle with the vanilla bean.
If using extract, add it after the cream has cooled.
Beat the egg yolks with the powdered sugar until well combined.
Gradually add the heated cream to the egg yolks, stirring well.
Return the mixture to the farina kettle and stir until it boils.
Continue stirring constantly until thick, then remove from heat.
Chill and freeze
Stir until the mixture is cold, then freeze according to your ice cream maker's instructions.
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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Vanilla + sugartop 8% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together35,032 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Cream + vanillatop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together12,301 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonanone (fruity, floral).
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Egg + sugartop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Vanilla + eggtop 23% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together27,347 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).
Vanilla and sugar barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 35,032 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
- Egg yolks
- Thicken the custard as they heat and give the ice cream its rich body.
- Rich, sweet cream
- Provides fat and richness, giving the ice cream a smooth, creamy texture.
- Powdered sugar
- Sweetens the base and dissolves smoothly into the eggs and cream.
The step that matters
Stirring the custard until thick. Egg yolks thicken as they heat, but if they get too hot they can scramble and turn grainy. Stir constantly over gentle heat and remove from heat once the custard coats a spoon.
“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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