Why it works: Lemon and cinnamon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 7,950 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓
Pudding Sauce
Ingredients
Directions
Make the sauce
Mix the white wine, brandy, powdered sugar, lemon rind, and cinnamon in a bowl.
Combine the mixture with the melted butter until well blended.
Store and serve
For storage, keep a prepared bottle of the mixture ready for use.
To serve, mix 2 tablespoons of the prepared mixture with melted butter.
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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Lemon + cinnamontop 7% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together7,950 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
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White wine + buttertop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,083 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
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White wine + brandytop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together620 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Sugar + cinnamontop 10% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together30,779 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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White wine + lemontop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,832 recipes
Shared aroma: myrcene (balsamic, herbaceous).
Sugar and cinnamon barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 30,779 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
- White wine
- Adds acidity and liquid that gives the sauce a bright, light flavour.
- Brandy
- Contributes aroma and a warm, spirited flavour to the sauce.
- Powdered sugar
- Provides sweetness and dissolves easily into the liquid for a smooth sauce.
- Melted butter
- Adds richness and fat, giving the sauce a smooth, velvety texture.
The step that matters
Combining the mixture with the melted butter. Butter and liquid naturally separate, so the butter should be very thick and poured in while the mixture is blended well. Thorough blending helps the sauce stay smooth rather than greasy or broken.
Swap the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (white wine, brandy, sugar, cinnamon, butter):
- Vanillafits better
- Applefits better
- Apricotfits better
- Lemonthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against white wine, brandy, sugar, cinnamon, butter. 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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