Name: Lithuanian Apple Crumble Cake
Ingredients: 1 3/4 sticks butter, softened; 3 eggs; 4 c. flour; 1 c. sugar; 2 tsp. baking powder; 1 tsp. vanilla or lemon juice (can also use nutmeg or cinnamon instead of vanilla); 8-10 apples, shredded; 3/4 c. sugar

Why it works: Vanilla and apple are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,501 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓

Lithuanian Apple Crumble Cake

Oven350 degrees

Time50-60 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the crumbs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
With your hands, mix butter, eggs, flour, sugar and baking powder until crumbs.

Assemble

Sprinkle half of the crumbs in the bottom of an 11 x 16 inch cookie sheet pan.
Shred the apples, toss with 3/4 cup sugar and lemon juice, and put on dough.
Spread the rest of the crumbs on top.

Bake

Bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes until brown.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

821Calories

21 gProtein

19 gFat

141 gCarbs

What these numbers assume: 9 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Butter	1 tbsp (14g)	102
Apple	1 medium (182g)	95
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Sugar	1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated	49
Vanilla	1 tsp extract (4ml)	12
Lemon	juice of 1 lemon (48ml)	12
Nutmeg	1 tsp ground (2.2g)	12
Cinnamon	1 tsp ground (2.6g)	6

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

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

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.

Vanilla + appletop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,501 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together35,032 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together124,287 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Flour + vanillatop 12% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together19,241 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Butter + vanillatop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together20,050 recipes

Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

Sugar and vanilla barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 35,032 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

Butter: Adds richness and a tender, crumbly texture to the crumbs.
Eggs: Bind the crumb mixture and add structure as it bakes.
Flour: Provides the main structure of the crumbs and the cake base.
Sugar: Sweetens the cake and helps the top brown as it bakes.
Baking powder: Releases gas during baking so the cake rises and becomes light.
Apples: Add moisture and fruity flavor to the layer baked into the cake.

Swap the apple

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, egg, flour, sugar, vanilla):

Raisinfits better
Figfits better
Blueberryfits better
Applethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against butter, egg, flour, sugar, vanilla. 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.