Why it works: Nutmeg and lemon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 11,318 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓
Custard Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point.
Make the custard
Boil the milk and cream together.
Thicken with a smooth mixture of flour and water until stiff enough to hold an egg.
Stir in the egg yolks, sugar, nutmeg, lemon peel, and brandy.
Bake and serve
Whip the egg whites until stiff and gently fold into the mixture.
Line a pie dish with puff pastry and pour in the mixture.
Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 30 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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Nutmeg + lemontop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together11,318 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
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Flour + nutmegtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,623 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Cream + nutmegtop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,920 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
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Milk + flourtop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Milk and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 78,219 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
- Milk
- Forms the liquid base of the custard, providing moisture and soft body.
- Egg yolks
- Thicken and enrich the custard as they set, giving a smooth, rich texture.
- Egg whites
- Whipped to stiff peaks, they lighten the mixture and help it rise in the oven.
- Flour
- Thickens the boiled milk and cream so the custard holds its shape.
- Heavy cream
- Adds fat for richness and a smoother, softer texture.
- Powdered loaf sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps balance the richness of the eggs and cream.
The step that matters
Folding in the egg whites. Whipped whites hold air that lightens the custard. Stirring them vigorously knocks the air out, so fold gently to keep the pudding light.
Swap the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, cream, flour, egg, sugar, nutmeg, brandy):
- Vanillafits better
- Raisinfits better
- Figfits better
- Lemonthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against milk, cream, flour, egg, sugar, nutmeg, brandy. 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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