Why it works: Cinnamon and apple match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and 5,586 recipes mention both. Both carry methyl cinnamate, which smells strawberry. The science ↓
The recipe
2 sandwichesIngredients
Contains: egg, milk, wheat (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)
Also mentioned in the method: bread
Directions
Method written by CompKitchen from the ingredient list. Not the original author's method, not kitchen-tested.
Whisk the 2 eggs and 1/4 cup milk in a shallow dish until smooth.
Split each cinnamon bun horizontally to make 4 bread halves. Shred the 4 slices of deli ham and divide them in half.
Peel, core, and thinly slice the apple, then divide the slices in half. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a skillet over medium heat and cook one half of the apple slices for 2 to 3 minutes until softened. Set aside.
Build 2 sandwiches on the bottom bun halves: layer 2 slices aged Cheddar, 2 slices Brie, half the shredded ham, and half the raw apple slices. Top with the other bun halves.
Dip each assembled sandwich briefly in the egg and milk mixture, coating both outer sides.
Melt the remaining 1 tablespoon butter in the skillet over medium-low heat. Cook the sandwiches 3 to 4 minutes per side until golden, the cheese is melted, and the egg is set.
Check that the egg coating reaches 160°F (71°C) in the middle of the sandwich and the ham is heated through. Add the cooked apple slices to the sandwiches before serving.
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.
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Cinnamon + appletop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together5,586 recipes
Shared aroma: methyl cinnamate (strawberry).
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Cheddar cheese + cheesetop 1% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together984 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Brie + cheesetop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together161 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Cheddar cheese + buttertop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together2,434 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Cheese + buttertop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together7,955 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
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