Why it works: Cream and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 9% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 43,450 recipes. Both carry 2,3-butanedione, which smells butter, sweet. The science ↓
Chocolate Cream
Ingredients
Directions
Make the custard
In a saucepan, combine the grated chocolate, cream, castor sugar, and egg yolks.
Stir over low heat until the mixture thickens.
Strain the mixture through a fine sieve.
Set and serve
Add the dissolved gelatine and mix well.
Pour into a mold and place in the ice to set.
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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Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Chocolate + creamtop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,466 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Chocolate + sugartop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together15,404 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Chocolate + eggtop 24% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together11,448 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-heptenal (green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Egg yolks
- Thicken the custard as they set on gentle heat, giving it a rich, smooth body.
- Gelatine
- Sets the chilled mixture so it holds its shape when unmolded.
- Chocolate
- Provides the main flavour and deep colour of the cream.
- Cream
- Adds fat and moisture, giving a soft, silky texture.
- Castor sugar
- Sweetens the custard and helps soften its texture.
The step that matters
Stir over low heat until the mixture thickens. Egg yolks scramble if they get too hot, leaving lumps. Gentle heat thickens the custard smoothly, and straining afterwards catches any bits that do form.
“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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