Why it works: Almond and nutmeg match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,115 recipes. Both carry eucalyptol, which smells eucalyptus, herbal. The science ↓
To Boil an Almond Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the mixture
Beat the almonds as small as possible.
Mix in the rose water and white wine.
Add the melted butter, egg yolks, egg whites, cream, sugar, grated nutmeg, flour, and bread crumbs, and mix all ingredients well together.
Cook
Boil the mixture for half an hour.
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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Almond + nutmegtop 4% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,115 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
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Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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White wine + buttertop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,083 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
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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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Almond + buttertop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,245 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-pentanedione (butter, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Sweet almonds
- Provide the main body and nutty flavor of the pudding.
- Egg yolks
- Enrich the custard and help it set as it cooks.
- Egg whites
- Add lightness and help bind the mixture as it cooks.
- Cream
- Adds richness and moisture, giving a softer, silkier texture.
- Fresh butter
- Adds fat for richness and a smooth, tender texture.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps balance the richness of the dairy and fat.
The step that matters
Boil the mixture for half an hour. Egg proteins set as they heat, and the cream and butter can separate or scorch if the heat is too high. Keep the boil gentle and stir so the pudding sets smoothly rather than curdling.
“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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