Why it works: Gelatin and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,778 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Raspberry and Blackberry Jelly
Ingredients
Directions
Dissolve and flavour
Combine 1 pint of water and 1 ounce of white isinglass in a pot. Stir until dissolved.
Add the rinds of 6 lemons and 1 pint of lemon juice. Sweeten with white sugar.
Boil for 4-5 minutes, then add a few drops of saffron tincture to color.
Strain the mixture and fill glasses when nearly cool.
Prepare the berry juice
Mash the berries and let them drain through a flannel bag without squeezing.
To each pint of juice, add 1 pound of white sugar and 1 beaten egg white.
Cook to a jelly
Heat the mixture on the stove; when it boils, remove from heat and skim off any scum.
Return to heat and boil until it reaches a jelly consistency, testing by dropping a bit into cold water.
If it forms a solid mass, it is ready. Seal in jars or cups.
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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Gelatin + sugartop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,778 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Lemon + sugartop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together53,532 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Lemon + eggtop 19% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together44,316 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,e)-2,4-decadienal (fatty, deep fried).
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Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Gelatin + lemontop 27% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,215 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-pinene (pine, resin).
Lemon and sugar barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 53,532 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
- Raspberries and blackberries
- Provides the main fruit flavour and the juice that becomes the jelly.
- White isinglass (gelatin)
- Sets the liquid into a firm, wobbly jelly as it cools.
- White sugar
- Sweetens the jelly and helps give it a tender, glossy set.
- Beaten egg white
- Helps clarify the juice, binding particles so they can be skimmed off as scum.
- Lemon rinds
- Adds aromatic citrus oil and a bright, slightly sharp note.
The step that matters
Boil until it reaches a jelly consistency. Sugar and gelatin set only when the mixture is concentrated enough. Stopping too early leaves it runny, while overboiling makes it stiff and rubbery. Testing a drop in cold water shows when it is ready.
Swap the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (gelatin, sugar, egg):
- Vanillafits better
- Raisinfits better
- Figfits about as well
- Lemonthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against gelatin, sugar, egg. 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.
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