Why it works: Buttermilk and flour are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,721 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Cherry Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a moderate oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the batter
Cream together the sugar and butter.
Add the beaten eggs and buttermilk, then mix in the baking soda and baking powder.
Stir in enough flour to create a batter thicker than cake dough.
Assemble and bake
Pour half of the batter into a greased and floured pudding pan.
Sprinkle flour over the batter to prevent the cherries from sinking.
Scatter the drained cherries thickly over the batter.
Lightly sweeten the cherries, then pour the remaining batter on top.
Bake in a moderate oven at 350°F (175°C) for 30 minutes or longer.
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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Buttermilk + flourtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,721 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together35,032 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Sugar + buttermilktop 9% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,973 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + vanillatop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together19,241 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Sugar and vanilla barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 35,032 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
- Eggs
- Bind the batter and add structure as they set during baking.
- Butter
- Creamed with sugar to add richness and a tender crumb.
- Buttermilk
- Adds moisture and acidity that reacts with the leavening.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the acidic buttermilk to produce gas that lifts the batter.
- Baking powder
- Provides additional lift so the pudding rises as it bakes.
- Flour
- Builds the structure of the batter so it holds the cherries.
The step that matters
Sprinkle flour over the batter before adding the cherries. The flour helps coat the fruit so it is held in the batter rather than sinking to the bottom while the pudding bakes. Well-drained cherries also prevent excess liquid from thinning the batter.
Swap the vanilla
The recipe marks vanilla as optional. How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, butter, egg, buttermilk, flour):
- Raisinfits better
- Vanillathe original
- Lemonfits less well
- Figfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, butter, egg, buttermilk, flour. 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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