Why it works: Bread and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and 27,232 recipes mention both. Both carry delta-decalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓
Queen of Puddings
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point.
Make the pudding
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Mix the bread crumbs, milk, melted butter, sugar, grated lemon zest, and lemon juice in a bowl.
Bake the mixture in buttered pans for one hour until set in the middle.
Top and bake the meringue
Spread the fruit jelly over the top of the baked pudding.
Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form, then gradually stir in the granulated sugar and a few drops of flavoring.
Return the pudding to the oven, leaving the door open, and bake until the meringue is lightly colored.
Serve warm.
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 aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
-
Bread + buttertop 7% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together27,232 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).
-
Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Bread + milktop 11% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together11,466 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).
-
Bread + eggtop 13% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together22,662 recipes
Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).
-
Milk + lemontop 15% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together19,053 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Bread crumbs
- Provide the bulk and body that the custard sets around.
- Milk
- Supplies liquid that the egg yolks thicken into a soft custard.
- Egg yolks
- Thicken the custard as they set during baking, giving a rich texture.
- Egg whites
- Whip into stiff peaks that form the light meringue topping.
- Fruit jelly
- Adds a layer of fruity sweetness between the custard and meringue.
- Butter
- Adds fat and richness, contributing to a tender crumb and flavor.
The step that matters
Baking the meringue until lightly colored. Egg white meringue is mostly sugar and air; it browns quickly once hot, so it can scorch if left too long. Pale golden color signals it is set and cooked through, while underbaking can leave it weepy.
Flavor stand-ins for the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (bread, milk, butter, sugar, egg):
- Vanillabetter flavor fit
- Figbetter flavor fit
- Peachabout as good a flavor fit
- Lemonthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against bread, milk, butter, sugar, egg. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).
“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.
You might also like
Lemon Cake228 recipes
Bread Pudding153 recipes
Lemon Ice147 recipes
Lemon Sherbet103 recipesThe Sunday pairing: one pairing, the chemistry behind it, and how to cook it. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account for sign-in; Pro adds the full results and chemistry.