Why it works: Cream and sherry are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 19% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,038 recipes. Both carry 2-heptanol, which smells bitter, floral. The science ↓
Marshmallow Trifle
Ingredients
Directions
Cut marshmallows into small pieces.
Mix with stiffly beaten cream and sherry.
Serve in frappe glasses topped with strawberries or candied cherries.
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 + sherrytop 19% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,038 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-heptanol (bitter, floral).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Marshmallows
- Melt slightly and create a soft, sweet, airy body when folded into the cream.
- Heavy cream
- Whipped into a stiff foam that gives the trifle its light, airy structure.
- Sherry
- Adds a mild, aromatic flavour that complements the sweetness of the marshmallows.
The step that matters
Beating the cream stiffly. Cream must be whipped to stiff peaks so it holds air and keeps the trifle light. Under-whipped cream will deflate and make the dessert loose and heavy.
“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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