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Dessert

A Grand Trifle

A layered dessert of biscuits, ratafias, macaroons, almonds, candied citron, orange peel, pineapple chips, and a custard with milk, cream, wine, and spices.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 20 ingredients
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Why it works: Biscuit and almond match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 388 recipes. Both carry nonanal, which smells fat, citrus. The science ↓

A Grand Trifle

Ingredients

Directions

Build the layers

  1. Layer fine sponge or Savoy biscuits at the bottom of a large glass dish.

  2. Add a layer of ratafias, then a layer of macaroons, sprinkling blanched and pounded almonds, candied citron, orange peel, and pineapple chips between layers.

  3. Pour sherry or wine over the layers, allowing them to soak.

Make the custard

  1. In a saucepan, boil equal parts milk and cream with lemon peel, cinnamon, laurel leaves, and sugar for 20 minutes.

  2. Cool the mixture slightly, then beat in egg yolks and rice flour, mixing gradually.

  3. Strain the mixture into a saucepan and stir over heat until it boils, then remove from heat and cool.

  4. Once cooled, stir in brandy and noyeau.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

  1. Biscuit + almondtop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together388 recipes

    Shared aroma: nonanal (fat, citrus).

  2. Almond + nutmegtop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together2,115 recipes

    Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).

  3. Mace + nutmegtop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together6,557 recipes

    Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).

  4. Biscuit + nutmegtop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together368 recipes

    Shared aroma: maltol (caramel, sweet).

  5. Orange + pineappletop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,664 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl isobutyrate (fruity, ethereal).

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 and enrich it with fat and richness as it sets.
Rice flour
Stabilizes the custard so it thickens smoothly and holds its body when cooled.
Sugar
Adds sweetness and balances the richness of the milk and cream.
Milk and cream
Form the liquid base of the custard, giving body and a smooth, rich texture.
Sherry or wine
Soaks into the biscuits and layers, adding moisture and a mellow, fruity flavor.

The step that matters

Stirring the custard until it boils. Egg yolks thicken as they heat, but if the custard is heated too fast or not stirred, the yolks can scramble and turn grainy. Stirring steadily and bringing it just to a boil keeps it smooth and thick.

Swap the mace

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (biscuit, almond, orange, pineapple, nutmeg, sherry, milk):

  1. Cinnamonfits better
  2. Cardamomfits better
  3. Clovefits better
  4. Macethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against biscuit, almond, orange, pineapple, nutmeg, sherry, milk. 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.

More trifle recipes

Apple 48Gooseberry 43Lemon 18Swiss Cream 17Brandy 13Grape 12 See all 115 →

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