Why it works: Bread and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 27,232 recipes. Both carry delta-decalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓
Chkksk Fondu
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the batter
Stir the baking soda into the milk.
Soak the bread crumbs in the milk.
Once soft, mix in the eggs, melted butter, salt, and pepper.
Add the cheese and beat the mixture well.
Bake and serve
Pour into a buttered pudding dish and sprinkle fine crumbs on top.
Bake at 400°F (200°C) until puffed and lightly browned.
Serve immediately as it will fall and become heavy.
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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Bread + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together27,232 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Cheese + breadtop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,130 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Cheese + buttertop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,962 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Milk + cheesetop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,426 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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 puff and set as it bakes.
- Bread crumbs
- Soak up the milk to give the custard body and a light, soft structure.
- Cheese
- Adds rich flavour and fat, and firms the custard as it sets.
- Sweet milk
- Provides the liquid that hydrates the crumbs and sets with the eggs.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the dairy and helps the fondue rise and brown.
The step that matters
Serve immediately after baking. The puffed structure set by eggs and heat is unstable once it cools, so it sinks and turns dense. Serving straight from the oven keeps it light.
“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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