Why it works: Coconut and almond match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,093 recipes. Both carry 2,3,5-trimethylpyrazine, which smells cocoa, roasted. The science ↓
Cocoanut Cream Puffs
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the choux dough
Combine hot water and butter in a saucepan; bring to a boil.
Stir in flour and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
Remove from heat and pour into a bowl to cool.
Beat in the whipped yolks of the eggs.
Fold in the stiffened egg whites.
Bake the puffs
Line a baking pan with buttered paper.
Drop batter by large spoonfuls onto the pan.
Bake in a 400°F (200°C) oven for 15 minutes.
When cool, cut off the tops of the puffs.
Fill and serve
Beat together whipped cream, grated coconut, powdered sugar, and almond extract until stiff.
Fill the puff shells with the mixture.
Replace the tops.
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.
-
Coconut + almondtop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together1,093 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3,5-trimethylpyrazine (cocoa, roasted).
-
Flour + almondtop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,673 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
-
Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
-
Butter + almondtop 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
- Eggs
- Egg yolks and whites give the dough structure and lift as the puffs bake.
- All-purpose flour
- Starch cooks into the dough, giving the puff shells their body and structure.
- Butter
- Fat adds richness and tenderness to the shells and helps the dough melt in the mouth.
- Whipped cream
- Forms the light, moist filling that sits inside the crisp puff shells.
- Grated coconut
- Adds coconut flavor and a chewy texture to the cream filling.
The step that matters
Cool the dough before adding the eggs. If the cooked dough is still very hot, the eggs can scramble or the mixture can thin out, so the puffs may not rise well. Letting it cool first helps the egg proteins and starch set the dough properly.
Swap the coconut
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, flour, egg, cream, sugar, almond):
- Vanillafits better
- Raisinfits better
- Coconutthe original
- Figfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, flour, egg, cream, sugar, almond. 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.
You might also like
Almond Sponge Cake26 recipes
Almond Custard22 recipes
Almond Wafers22 recipes
Coconut Almond Cake17 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.