Why it works: Raisin and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 13% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 12,481 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
Banbury Tarts
Ingredients
Directions
Make the filling
Stone and chop the raisins.
Add the sugar and slightly beat the egg.
Finely roll the cracker and mix with lemon juice and grated rind.
Shape the tarts
Roll the pastry to about 1/2 inch thickness.
Cut the pastry into pieces 3 1/2 inches long and 3 inches wide.
Place 2 teaspoons of the mixture on each piece.
Moisten the edges with cold water halfway around.
Fold the pastry over.
Press the edges together with a three‑tined fork, first dipped in flour.
Bake
Bake for twenty minutes in a slow oven.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 5 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Cracker | 5 saltine crackers (15g) | 66 |
| Grape | 1/2 cup (76g) | 62 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Lemon | juice of 1 lemon (48ml) | 12 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
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. See the original page.
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.
-
Raisin + sugartop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together12,481 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
-
Raisin + lemontop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,742 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
-
Sugar + lemontop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together53,532 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
-
Egg + lemontop 19% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together44,316 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,e)-2,4-decadienal (fatty, deep fried).
-
Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Sugar and lemon barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 53,532 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
- Raisins
- Provide chewy sweetness and bulk in the filling.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the filling and helps it become moist and sticky as it bakes.
- Egg
- Binds the filling so it holds together when baked.
- Cracker
- Adds body to the filling and absorbs moisture from the lemon.
- Lemon
- Adds acidity and aroma from the juice and grated rind.
The step that matters
Press the edges together with a flour-dipped fork. Sealing the moistened edges firmly keeps the filling inside the pastry while it bakes. Dipping the fork in flour stops the tines from sticking to the dough so the seal stays neat.
Swap the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (raisin, sugar, egg):
- Vanillafits better
- Figfits better
- Lemonthe original
- Datesfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against raisin, sugar, egg. 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.
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