Why it works: Sugar and cream are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 9% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 43,450 recipes. Both carry 2,3-butanedione, which smells butter, sweet. The science ↓
Egg-noggs
Ingredients
Directions
Make the eggnog
In a bowl, beat the eggs until frothy.
Add the powdered sugar and mix well.
Stir in the new milk and sweet cream until combined.
Gradually add the brandy or whisky, mixing thoroughly.
Serve
Serve chilled.
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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Sugar + creamtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Milk + brandytop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,738 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).
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Cream + brandytop 16% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,635 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-heptanol (bitter, floral).
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Egg + brandytop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,340 recipes
Shared aroma: acetoin (butter, cream).
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Milk + creamtop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together29,399 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Eggs
- Beaten eggs trap air and thicken the drink, giving it body and a light froth.
- Powdered sugar
- Dissolves easily into the liquid, adding sweetness without grittiness.
- New milk
- Forms the liquid base and dilutes the richness of the cream and eggs.
- Sweet cream
- Adds fat for a smooth, rich mouthfeel.
- Brandy or whisky
- Adds alcohol flavour and aroma, and helps keep the drink from tasting flat.
The step that matters
Gradually add the brandy or whisky. Adding spirit slowly and mixing thoroughly keeps the mixture evenly blended. Alcohol can curdle or thin cold dairy and eggs if poured in all at once, so a gradual addition helps the texture stay smooth.
“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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