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Christmas Coffee

"I have used this recipe for years for teachers' gifts, gifts to share with friends, and to have on hand at my own home. It is a favorite of everyone who has ever had it. So easy to make. To enjoy, place 3 to 4 teaspoons of Christmas Coffee in a coffee cup, add hot water, and mix."

By allrecipes · From Open Recipes · 6 ingredients
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Christmas Coffee

Why it works: Sugar and sugar substitute share more aroma than cooks usually use. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 79 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓

Christmas Coffee

5 cups dry mix
Prep5 min

Ingredients

Directions

Step-by-step directions aren't available for this recipe. See the full recipe at the source →

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

55Calories
0 gProtein
0 gFat
15 gCarbs

Counts 3 of 4 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 3 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Cinnamon1 tsp ground (2.6g)6
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Coffeenot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By allrecipes. Recipe from Open Recipes.

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.

  1. Sugar + sugar substitutetop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together79 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

  2. Sugar + cinnamontop 10% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together30,779 recipes

    Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

  3. Coffee + cinnamontop 10% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together895 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4-methoxybenzaldehyde (sweet, anise).

  4. Sugar substitute + cinnamontop 14% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together34 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

  5. Sugar + coffeetop 17% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together4,344 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

Sugar and cinnamon barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 30,779 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