Why it works: Sherry and brandy are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,209 recipes. Both carry ethyl cinnamate, which smells sweet, balsamic. The science ↓
Blancmange
Ingredients
Directions
Make the mixture
In a saucepan, mix the milk, cream, and sugar together.
Heat gently, stirring constantly, and add the lemon rind.
Do not allow the mixture to boil; remove the lemon peel when it reaches the right consistency.
Boil for 20 minutes, then remove the lemon peel.
Finish and set
Once nearly cold, stir in the sherry and brandy.
Pour the mixture into a mold and let it cool and stiffen.
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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Sherry + brandytop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,209 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
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Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
-
Milk + sherrytop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,479 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3,5-trimethylpyrazine (cocoa, roasted).
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Milk + lemontop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together19,053 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Milk + brandytop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,738 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Isinglass
- Sets the liquid mixture into a firm, tender body as it cools.
- Milk
- Forms the liquid base that the setting agent firms up.
- Cream
- Adds richness and a smooth, velvety mouthfeel.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness to the set dessert.
- Lemon rind
- Adds a light citrus aroma to the mixture.
The step that matters
Heat gently and stir constantly. Milk and cream can scorch on the base of the pan if left unstirred, and the mixture must not boil. Isinglass, a collagen-based setting agent, firms the mixture as it cools, so the heating should be controlled.
Swap the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, cream, sugar, sherry, brandy):
- Vanillafits better
- Apricotfits better
- Strawberryfits better
- Lemonthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against milk, cream, sugar, sherry, 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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