Name: Fat-free Apple Coffeecake
Ingredients: 1 x nonstick cooking spray, mazz; 1 cup flour; 1 1/2 tsp baking powder; 1/2 tsp salt; 3/4 cup sugar; 1/3 cup skim milk; 2 egg whites; 1/3 cup karo light or dark corn syru; 2 apples, peeled, cut in ½"; 2 tbsp cinnamon sugar

Why it works: Apple and cinnamon are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,598 recipes. Both carry methyl cinnamate, which smells strawberry. The science ↓

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.

Apple + cinnamontop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together5,598 recipes

Shared aroma: methyl cinnamate (strawberry).
Flour + cinnamontop 9% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together17,341 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Corn + cinnamontop 9% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together647 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
Milk + cinnamontop 10% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together12,655 recipes

Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).
Sugar + cinnamontop 10% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together30,779 recipes

Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

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

What each ingredient does

Flour: Provides the starch structure that sets the crumb as the cake bakes.
Baking powder: Releases gas during baking so the cake rises and becomes light.
Egg whites: Add structure and help the batter set and hold its rise.
Sugar: Adds sweetness and helps the cake brown and stay tender.
Apples: Add moisture and fruity flavor as they soften under the batter's surface.
Corn syrup: Keeps the crumb moist and tender and adds sweetness.

The step that matters

Gradually stir into dry ingredients until smooth. Overmixing once the liquid meets the flour develops gluten, which makes the cake tough and dense. Stir only until the batter is smooth and no dry flour remains.

Swap the apple

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (flour, sugar, milk, egg, corn, cinnamon):

Vanillafits better
Raisinfits better
Figfits better
Applethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against flour, sugar, milk, egg, corn, cinnamon. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“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.

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Milk	1 cup (244ml) whole	149
Apple	1 medium (182g)	95
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Corn	1/2 cup kernels (82g)	77
Sugar	1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated	49
Cinnamon	1 tsp ground (2.6g)	6
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0

Fat-free Apple Coffeecake