Name: English Pumpkin Pie
Ingredients: 1 quart sifted pumpkin; ½ pint milk; 6 eggs; ½ pound sugar; ¼ pound butter; 1 tablespoon French brandy; ⅓ cup Madeira or sherry

Why it works: Brandy and sherry are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,209 recipes. Both carry ethyl cinnamate, which smells sweet, balsamic. The science ↓

English Pumpkin Pie

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the pumpkin

Cut the pumpkin into large pieces, peel, and place in cold water over low heat.
Simmer without boiling until tender, then drain and pass through a colander.
Squeeze through coarse muslin to remove all water.

Make the filling

Measure the pumpkin and add the ingredients in the order given.
Beat the eggs until light and thick.
Cream the butter and sugar until soft before adding.
Mix well and bake in puff pastry.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

Brandy + sherrytop 6% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,209 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together81,283 recipes

Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
Butter + sherrytop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,505 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
Milk + sherrytop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,479 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,3,5-trimethylpyrazine (cocoa, roasted).
Pumpkin + milktop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together1,404 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Pumpkin: Forms the bulk of the filling and gives the pie its body and flavor.
Eggs: Beaten eggs add structure and help the filling set when baked.
Butter: Adds richness and a soft, tender texture to the filling.
Sugar: Adds sweetness and helps tenderize the filling.
Milk: Adds moisture and softens the custard-like texture.

The step that matters

Squeeze out the water from the pumpkin. Excess water thins the filling and can keep it from setting firmly, leaving a watery or loose pie.

Swap the pumpkin

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, egg, sugar, butter, brandy, sherry):

Vanillafits better
Figfits better
Apricotfits better
Pumpkinthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against milk, egg, sugar, butter, brandy, sherry. 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.