Why it works: Brandy and currant are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,057 recipes. Both carry ethyl cinnamate, which smells sweet, balsamic. The science ↓
Modern Cookery
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 custard
Simmer the new milk with the lemon rind and bruised almonds (or cinnamon) for 10 to 20 minutes.
In a bowl, mix the cream (if using), sugar, eggs, and brandy.
Assemble and soak
Layer the bread and butter in a dish, adding currants and candied rind between layers.
Pour the milk mixture over the layered bread and let it stand for 2 hours.
Bake
Bake in a moderate oven at 350°F (175°C) for 30 minutes.
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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Brandy + curranttop 7% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,057 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
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Lemon + almondtop 10% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together5,655 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
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Milk + breadtop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together11,466 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).
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Egg + breadtop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together22,662 recipes
Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).
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Milk + lemontop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together19,053 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Eggs
- Eggs bind the custard and set it as the pudding bakes.
- Milk
- Milk forms the liquid base that soaks into the bread and becomes custard.
- Bread
- Bread absorbs the custard and gives the pudding its body.
- Sugar
- Sugar sweetens the custard and helps the top brown.
- Brandy
- Brandy adds aroma to the custard.
The step that matters
Letting the bread stand for 2 hours. The standing time lets the bread absorb the custard evenly. Rushing it can leave dry pockets and a pudding that does not set through.
Swap the currant
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, lemon, almond, sugar, egg, brandy, bread):
- Vanillafits better
- Figfits better
- Raisinfits better
- Currantthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against milk, lemon, almond, sugar, egg, brandy, bread. 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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