Panamanian Apple Cake

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.

1. Vanilla + cinnamontop 1% of all pairs
   Smell alikestrong
   Cooked together5,287 recipes

   Shared aroma: 4-methoxybenzaldehyde (sweet, anise).

2. Apple + cinnamontop 4% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together5,598 recipes

   Shared aroma: methyl cinnamate (strawberry).

3. Apple + vanillatop 8% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together1,501 recipes

   Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

4. Vanilla + nutstop 8% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together638 recipes

   Shared aroma: alpha-pinene (pine, turpentine).

5. Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairs
   Smell alikelow
   Cooked together35,032 recipes

   Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

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

Apples

Provide moisture and tender fruit pieces that soften and sweeten as the cake bakes.

Flour

Forms the cake's structure as its proteins set during baking.

Sugar

Sweetens the cake and contributes to browning at the surface.

Canola oil

Adds fat that keeps the crumb moist and tender.

Egg

Binds the batter and adds structure as it sets.

Baking soda

Reacts with the batter's acidity to produce gas that helps the cake rise.

Swap the nuts

The recipe marks nuts as optional. How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (apple, sugar, canola oil, egg, vanilla, cinnamon, flour):

1. Almondfits better
2. Chestnutfits better
3. Hazelnutfits better
4. Nutsthe original

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