Why it works: Chocolate and vanilla are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 10,020 recipes. Both carry sotolon, which smells curry, maple. The science ↓
Chocolate Icing
Ingredients
Directions
Make the icing
Melt the chocolate in a bowl.
Gradually add the cold water, a little at a time, and beat until you have a thick, smooth paste.
Add powdered sugar and beat until smooth.
Spread and flavour
Spread immediately, then add a little vanilla and a pinch of salt.
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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Chocolate + vanillatop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together10,020 recipes
Shared aroma: sotolon (curry, maple).
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Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together35,032 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Chocolate + sugartop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together15,404 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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
- Bitter chocolate
- Provides the main flavour and fat, and firms as it cools to set the icing.
- Powdered sugar
- Adds sweetness and body, thickening the icing to a spreadable consistency.
- Cold water
- Loosens the melted chocolate into a smooth, thick paste when beaten in gradually.
- Vanilla
- Adds aroma that rounds out the chocolate flavour.
The step that matters
Adding the cold water gradually. Melted chocolate can seize and turn grainy or stiff if liquid is added too quickly. Adding the water a little at a time while beating keeps the mixture smooth and emulsified.
“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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