Why it works: Milk and vanilla are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 19,187 recipes. Both carry ethyl caproate, which smells fruity, apple peel. The science ↓
Vanilla Ice Cream
Ingredients
Directions
Make the custard
Whisk the egg yolks and sugar together until well combined.
Boil the cream and milk with the vanilla for a few minutes.
Stir the hot mixture into the egg yolks and sugar.
Return the mixture to the saucepan and stir over low heat until it thickens, but do not let it boil.
Strain the mixture through a fine strainer if necessary, then add a few drops of vanilla essence.
Chill and freeze
Allow to cool, then freeze.
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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Milk + vanillatop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together19,187 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).
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Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together35,032 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Cream + vanillatop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together12,301 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonanone (fruity, floral).
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Cream + milktop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together29,399 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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
- Egg yolks
- Thicken the custard as they set on gentle heat, and add richness.
- Cream
- Adds fat for a rich, smooth texture that resists ice crystals.
- Milk
- Provides liquid and milk solids that give body to the base.
- Castor sugar
- Sweetens the base and lowers its freezing point for a softer texture.
- Vanilla pod
- Infuses the milk and cream with its aroma and flavour.
The step that matters
Cooking the custard over low heat. Egg yolks thicken through gentle heat, but if the mixture boils they can scramble and curdle. Stir steadily and keep the heat low until it coats the spoon.
“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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