Name: Small Cocoa-nut Puddings
Ingredients: 2 ounces fresh butter, cut small; 4 ounces pounded sugar; 2 ounces finely grated cocoa-nut; 1 ounce candied citron, shredded; grated rind of ½ large lemon; juice of ½ large lemon; 4 eggs

Why it works: Butter and cocoa work together. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 548 recipes. Both carry delta-undecalactone, which smells coconut, creamy. The science ↓

Small Cocoa-nut Puddings

Oven, in the book's wordsA moderate oven

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.

Make the batter

Melt the butter and sugar together over low heat until boiling, then let cool.
Mix in the grated cocoa-nut, shredded citron, lemon rind, and beaten eggs.
Add the strained lemon juice and combine well.

Bake

Pour the mixture into buttered cups.
Sift sugar on top.
Bake for 30 minutes at 350°F (175°C).

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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 + cocoatop 15% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together548 recipes

Shared aroma: delta-undecalactone (coconut, creamy).
Butter + lemontop 16% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together41,227 recipes

Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together118,967 recipes

Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Butter + sugartop 17% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together98,233 recipes

Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Sugar + lemontop 18% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together53,532 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

Sugar and lemon barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 53,532 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 help it set into a light, custard-like texture when baked.
Butter: Adds richness and moisture, and helps the pudding hold together as it cooks.
Sugar: Adds sweetness and helps brown the sugared top as it bakes.
Cocoa-nut: Contributes moisture, body, and a rich coconut flavour to the pudding.
Lemon juice: Adds acidity that brightens the flavour and balances the sweetness.