Why it works: Cream and wine are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 19% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,887 recipes. Both carry 1-octen-3-one, which smells mushroom, metallic. The science ↓
For a Dessert
Ingredients
Directions
Line a large dish with sponge cake and spread it thickly with jelly or marmalade.
Sweeten the cream and add the wine.
Stand in a cool place.
Beat the egg whites to a stiff froth and gently fold them into the cream mixture.
Pour the mixture into the dish over the sponge cake.
Chill before serving.
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 + winetop 19% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,887 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
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Cream + eggtop 24% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together42,166 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
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Wine + eggtop 33% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together6,918 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-heptenal (green).
Cream and egg barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 42,166 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
- Sponge cake
- Forms the base layer that soaks up the wine and holds the topping.
- Egg whites
- Whipped to a stiff froth, they lighten the cream and give it a airy, set texture.
- Heavy cream
- Provides richness and a smooth, creamy body once sweetened and chilled.
- Jelly or marmalade
- Adds sweetness and fruity flavour, and moistens the top of the sponge.
The step that matters
Folding in the egg whites. Egg whites must be beaten to a stiff froth and folded in gently. Overmixing collapses the foam, deflating the air that gives the cream a light, airy texture.
“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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