Why it works: Cream and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 9% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 43,450 recipes. Both carry 2,3-butanedione, which smells butter, sweet. The science ↓
Orange Cream
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Heat the cream until reduced to ½ pint.
Soak the gelatine in cold water.
Grate the rind of the oranges over the gelatine.
Strain the juice of the oranges and mix with sugar.
Make the custard
In a double boiler, combine the cream and beaten egg yolks, stirring until thickened.
Add the soaked gelatine to the mixture and remove from heat.
Let it stand for 2 minutes, then stir in the orange juice and sugar.
Beat until the consistency is like soft custard, then fold in whipped cream.
Set
Pour into molds and refrigerate to harden.
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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Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Orange + sugartop 20% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together19,212 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Cream + eggtop 24% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together42,166 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
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Cream + orangetop 28% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,170 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
Orange and sugar barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 19,212 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
- Gelatine
- Sets the mixture so it holds its shape when chilled and unmoulded.
- Egg yolks
- Thicken the cream into a custard and add richness.
- Cream
- Provides fat and richness, giving a smooth, creamy texture.
- Orange juice
- Adds bright acidity and citrus flavour that balances the sugar.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the dish and balances the acidity of the orange juice.
The step that matters
Thickening the egg yolks over the double boiler. Egg yolks set when heated, but too much heat makes them scramble and turn grainy. Gentle, steady heat in a double boiler, with constant stirring, thickens the custard smoothly.
Swap the orange
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (cream, sugar, egg):
- Vanillafits better
- Raisinfits better
- Strawberryfits better
- Orangethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against cream, sugar, egg. 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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