Why it works: Almond and vanilla match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,961 recipes. Both carry eucalyptol, which smells eucalyptus, herbal. The science ↓
Chocolade Koch — Chocolate Mould with Almonds
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point. The book gives no cooking times either; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.
Prepare
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
Make the batter
In a bowl, stir together the butter, sugar, pounded almonds, eggs, egg yolks, and grated chocolate.
Gently fold in the whipped egg whites until combined.
Pour the mixture into a buttered mould.
Bake and serve
Bake for about 20-25 minutes until set.
Alternatively, steam the mixture in a buttered and sugared form.
Serve with vanilla sauce made from cream.
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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Almond + vanillatop 4% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together3,961 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
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Vanilla + chocolatetop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together10,020 recipes
Shared aroma: sotolon (curry, maple).
-
Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together35,032 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Almond + chocolatetop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,733 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-pentanedione (butter, sweet).
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Butter + almondtop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,245 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-pentanedione (butter, sweet).
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
- Eggs
- Bind the mixture and set into a firm, sliceable structure when baked.
- Egg whites
- Whipped to trap air, giving the mould a light, airy rise.
- Egg yolks
- Add richness and help the mixture set smoothly and tenderly.
- Pounded almonds
- Provide body, nutty flavour and a moist, tender crumb.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richness and a smooth, tender texture.
- Grated vanilla chocolate
- Supplies chocolate flavour and richness throughout the mould.
The step that matters
Folding in the whipped egg whites. Whites must be folded gently so the air bubbles they hold are not knocked out. Deflating them leads to a dense mould instead of a light, risen one.
Swap the almond
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, sugar, egg, vanilla, chocolate):
- Almondthe original
- Pecansfits about as well
- Hazelnutfits less well
- Macadamia nutfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, sugar, egg, vanilla, chocolate. 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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