Why it works: Rum and brandy are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,058 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
Cambridge Milk Punch
Ingredients
Directions
In a pot, combine 2 quarts of new milk and the thinly pared rind of 1 lemon with ½ pound of sugar.
Slowly bring the mixture to a boil, then remove the lemon rind.
Take the pot off the heat and stir in 2 well-whisked eggs mixed with ½ pint of cold milk, strained through a sieve. Do not allow the milk to boil after adding the eggs.
Gradually add 1 pint of rum and ½ pint of brandy.
Froth the punch and serve immediately in warm glasses.
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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Rum + brandytop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,058 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Milk + rumtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together967 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl 2-methylbutyrate (fruity, apple).
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Sugar + rumtop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,908 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Milk + lemontop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together19,053 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Milk + brandytop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,738 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Eggs
- Thicken the punch gently into a smooth, creamy body when heated without boiling.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the punch and balances the alcohol and lemon.
- New milk
- Forms the creamy base that the eggs and spirits are blended into.
- Rum
- Adds the main spirit flavour and strength to the punch.
- Brandy
- Adds a second spirit layer of fruity, warm flavour.
The step that matters
Do not let the milk boil after adding the eggs. Egg proteins set and curdle when overheated, leaving the punch grainy instead of smooth. Removing the pot from the heat before stirring in the egg mixture keeps it silky.
Swap the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, sugar, egg, rum, brandy):
- Vanillafits better
- Pineapplefits better
- Apricotfits better
- Lemonthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against milk, sugar, egg, rum, brandy. 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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