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Dessert

Custard Mould

A custard made with eggs, milk, sugar, brandy, gelatin, and vanilla, set in a mould and chilled.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 6 ingredients
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Why it works: Milk and vanilla are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 19,187 recipes. Both carry ethyl caproate, which smells fruity, apple peel. The science ↓

Custard Mould

Ingredients

Directions

Make the custard

  1. Combine eggs, milk, and sugar in a saucepan.

  2. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly until thickened.

Set and flavour

  1. Soak the gelatin in cold water until soft.

  2. Dissolve the gelatin in the warm custard mixture.

  3. Add brandy and vanilla, mixing well.

  4. Pour into a mould and refrigerate until set.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

  1. Milk + vanillatop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together19,187 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).

  2. Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together35,032 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

  3. Brandy + vanillatop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together806 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

  4. Milk + brandytop 15% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together3,738 recipes

    Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).

  5. Egg + brandytop 17% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together7,340 recipes

    Shared aroma: acetoin (butter, cream).

Sugar and vanilla barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 35,032 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

Eggs
Thicken the custard as they cook, giving it body and structure.
Milk
Forms the liquid base of the custard and adds richness and softness.
Castor sugar
Sweetens the custard and helps soften its set texture.
Sheet gelatine
Sets the custard so it holds its shape when unmoulded.
Brandy
Adds aroma and flavour to the set custard.

The step that matters

Cook over low heat, stirring constantly until thickened. Egg proteins set at moderate temperatures, so high heat or lack of stirring can curdle the eggs and leave lumps. Gentle, constant stirring keeps the custard smooth and evenly thickened.

“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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