Why it works: Butter and cream are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 41,516 recipes. Both carry delta-dodecalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓
Cream Sauce
Ingredients
Directions
In a bowl, cream the butter until smooth.
Gradually add the powdered sugar while beating continuously until light and creamy.
Slowly mix in the wine (or vanilla) and then the cream, adding a little at a time.
Set the bowl in a basin of hot water and stir until the mixture is smooth and creamy, about a few minutes.
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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Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Sugar + creamtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Butter + winetop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,645 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-furfurylthiol (coffee, roasted).
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Butter + sugartop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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Cream + winetop 19% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,887 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Butter
- Provides fat and richness, and creams with sugar to give the sauce a smooth, light body.
- Powdered sugar
- Adds sweetness and, when beaten with butter, helps create a light, creamy texture.
- Cream or milk
- Adds moisture and liquid richness, loosening the mixture into a smooth sauce.
- Wine or vanilla
- Adds flavor and aroma to the sauce.
The step that matters
Adding the wine or vanilla and cream slowly. Adding liquid gradually lets the butter and sugar emulsify and stay smooth. Dumping it in at once can cause the mixture to separate or turn grainy.
“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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