Why it works: Butter and cream are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 41,516 recipes. Both carry delta-dodecalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓
Cream Sauce
Ingredients
Directions
Cream the butter and powdered sugar together until smooth.
Add the rich cream and mix well.
Stir the mixture into the boiling water on the stove.
Cook for a few minutes, stirring constantly.
Remove from heat and add your choice of flavoring.
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.
-
Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
-
Sugar + creamtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
-
Sugar + buttertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Powdered sugar
- Adds sweetness and body, and dissolves into the fat to give a smooth base.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richness and a smooth, silky mouthfeel.
- Rich cream
- Adds fat and creaminess, giving the sauce a softer, fuller texture.
- Boiling water
- Adds liquid that loosens the mixture into a pourable sauce.
The step that matters
Cook for a few minutes, stirring constantly.. Powdered sugar contains starch, which thickens as it heats. Constant stirring keeps it dispersed so the sauce stays smooth rather than lumpy or scorched on the bottom.
“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 cream sauce recipes
You might also like
White Cake431 recipes
Pound Cake373 recipes
Orange Bundt Cake349 recipes
Spice Cake344 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.