Why it works: Nutmeg and pepper match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 13,015 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓
Cheese Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a hot oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the mixture
Warm the butter in a basin and beat it into a cream.
Mix in the grated cheese, cream, and beaten eggs until light.
Sprinkle in nutmeg, salt, and pepper.
Bake and serve
Turn the mixture into a well-buttered basin.
Bake in a moderate oven at 350°F (175°C) until light brown.
Turn out onto a dish and serve hot with slices of toast.
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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Nutmeg + peppertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together13,015 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Butter + cheesetop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,962 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Cream + nutmegtop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,920 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
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Cheese + creamtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,655 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
- Butter
- Creamed with the warm basin to give richness and a tender, smooth texture.
- Cheese
- Adds savory flavor and body to the custard-like mixture.
- Eggs
- Set during baking to give the pudding its structure and lightness.
- Cream
- Adds moisture and richness, keeping the pudding soft and tender.
The step that matters
Bake until light brown. Eggs set as they bake, so stopping too early leaves the pudding wet in the centre, while overbaking makes it dry and rubbery.
Swap the nutmeg
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, cheese, cream, egg, pepper):
- Nutmegthe original
- Parsleyfits about as well
- Tarragonfits less well
- Thymefits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, cheese, cream, egg, pepper. 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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