Why it works: Egg and brandy are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 17% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 7,340 recipes. Both carry acetoin, which smells butter, cream. The science ↓
Souffles and Puddings
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.
Prepare
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
In a bowl, mix together the whole eggs, egg yolks, and brandy.
Bake
Pour the mixture into a prepared pastry shell.
Bake in the preheated oven until puffed and golden.
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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Egg + brandytop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,340 recipes
Shared aroma: acetoin (butter, cream).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Whole eggs
- Set during baking to give the filling its structure and body.
- Egg yolks
- Add richness and smoothness, and help the filling set softly.
- Brandy
- Adds the distinctive aroma and flavour to the filling.
The step that matters
Bake until puffed and golden. Egg proteins set as the filling heats, so the soufflé rises and firms. Overbaking pushes the proteins too far, squeezing out moisture and leaving the filling dry and rubbery.
“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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