Why it works: Egg and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 21% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 122,807 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
Egg Kisses
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a slow oven”. The 300°F (150°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the meringue
Beat the egg whites until stiff.
Gradually whip in the powdered sugar.
Add flavoring to taste.
Shape and bake
Grease a baking pan lightly.
Drop tablespoonfuls of the mixture onto the pan.
Sift a little sugar on top.
Bake in a slow oven at 300°F (150°C) until browned.
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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Egg + sugartop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Egg whites
- Whipped into foam, they create the airy structure that holds the kisses together.
- Powdered sugar
- Stabilizes the whipped whites and adds sweetness, helping the surface brown in the oven.
The step that matters
Whipping the egg whites until stiff. Egg whites must be beaten to a stable foam before sugar is added. Under-whipped whites collapse, and over-whipped whites turn dry and grainy, so the kisses may spread or crack.
“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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