Why it works: Cream and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 41,516 recipes. Both carry delta-dodecalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓
Ice Cream Candy
Ingredients
Directions
Cook the syrup
Combine sugar, vinegar, water, and cream of tartar in a saucepan.
Cook over medium heat without stirring for about 25 minutes.
Test by dropping a small amount into cold water; it should harden.
Pull the candy
Remove from heat and work the mixture as soon as possible.
Add flavoring while pulling the candy.
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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Cream + buttertop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Sugar + creamtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Cream + nutmegtop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,920 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
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Sugar + vinegartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,806 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Butter + nutmegtop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together24,377 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Sugar
- Dissolves and cooks into the firm, sweet base that sets as the candy cools.
- Cream of tartar
- Adds acidity that helps keep the sugar from turning grainy as it cooks.
- Vinegar
- Adds acidity that helps keep the sugar syrup smooth rather than crystallising.
The step that matters
Remove from heat and work the mixture as soon as possible. Sugar syrup firms up quickly as it cools and turns brittle. Working it promptly while still warm keeps it pliable enough to pull.
Swap the nutmeg
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, vinegar, cream, butter):
- Cinnamonfits about as well
- Nutmegthe original
- Tarragonfits about as well
- Peppermintfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, vinegar, cream, butter. 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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