Why it works: Syrup and lemon are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 20% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,235 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Damson-water Ice
Ingredients
Directions
Make the damson pulp
Heat 1 pint of syrup in a preserving pan.
Add 1 quart of damsons and simmer gently until well done.
Pass the mixture through a sieve.
Finish and freeze
Stir in the juice of 1-2 lemons and 3-4 drops of Noyau.
Freeze the mixture by working it until smooth.
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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Syrup + lemontop 20% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,235 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Damsons
- Provide the main fruit flavour and body of the ice once cooked and sieved.
- Syrup
- Adds sweetness and, once frozen, keeps the ice soft rather than rock hard.
- Lemon juice
- Adds acidity that brightens the fruit flavour and balances the sweetness.
- Noyau
- Adds a faint almond-like aroma that complements the fruit.
The step that matters
Freeze by working the mixture until smooth. Stirring or beating during freezing breaks up ice crystals as they form, giving a smooth texture instead of a coarse, icy one. Stopping too early leaves large crystals.
“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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