Why it works: Egg and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 18% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 88,785 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
Prune Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the prune base
Boil the prunes until soft, then drain them.
Stir in the granulated sugar.
Fold and bake
Beat the egg whites until stiff and fold them into the prune mixture.
Bake in a 400°F (200°C) oven for 15 minutes.
Make the custard
For the custard, combine the egg yolks and milk, then cook until thickened.
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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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 + milktop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together88,785 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Sugar + milktop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together77,875 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Sugar and milk barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 77,875 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
- Prunes
- Provide the main fruit flavour and soft, moist body to the pudding.
- Granulated sugar
- Adds sweetness and balances the tartness of the cooked prunes.
- Egg whites
- Beaten until stiff, they trap air that lifts and lightens the pudding as it bakes.
- Egg yolks
- Thicken the custard as they cook and add richness to its texture.
- Milk
- Forms the liquid base of the custard, which sets as the egg proteins cook.
The step that matters
Folding in the beaten egg whites. Stiff egg whites trap air, which gives the pudding its rise. Folding gently keeps that air in, while stirring vigorously deflates the foam and leaves a dense result.
“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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