Why it works: Cream and sugar 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 ↓
Velvet Cream
Ingredients
Directions
Make the mixture
Whip the cream until soft peaks form.
Melt the gelatin in the water over low heat.
Add the sugar and sherry to the melted gelatin and stir until dissolved.
Strain the gelatin mixture into the whipped cream and mix lightly.
Set and serve
Pour the mixture into small moulds rinsed with water or one large mould.
Refrigerate until firm.
To unmould, dip the mould briefly in warm water and turn out.
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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Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Cream + sherrytop 19% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,038 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-heptanol (bitter, floral).
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Sherry + sugartop 22% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,141 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Cream
- Whipped to form the light, airy body of the dessert.
- Gelatine
- Sets the liquid mixture so it holds its shape when chilled.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness to balance the richness of the cream.
- Sherry or brandy
- Adds aroma and flavour to the dessert.
The step that matters
Strain the gelatin mixture into the whipped cream and mix lightly. Gelatine begins to set as it cools, so if it is cold or lumpy when folded in, it forms strands or specks. Mixing lightly keeps the air whipped into the cream so the dessert stays velvety rather than dense.
“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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