Why it works: Lemon and nutmeg match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 11,318 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓
Mock Apple Pie
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the filling
Crush finely with a rolling pin, one large Boston cracker.
Put it into a bowl and pour upon it one teacupful of cold water.
Add one teacupful of fine white sugar, the juice and pulp of one lemon, half a lemon rind grated and a little nutmeg.
Assemble and bake
Line the pie-plate with half puff paste and pour in the mixture.
Cover with the paste and bake half an hour.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 4 of 6 ingredients. The other 2 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 4 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Cracker | 5 saltine crackers (15g) | 66 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Lemon | juice of 1 lemon (48ml) | 12 |
| Nutmeg | 1 tsp ground (2.2g) | 12 |
| Water | not in our table | 0 |
| Pie | not in our table | 0 |
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.
-
Lemon + nutmegtop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together11,318 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
-
Sugar + lemontop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together53,532 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
-
Sugar + nutmegtop 20% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together23,364 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-penten-3-one (fish, pungent).
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
- Boston cracker
- Crushed and soaked, it softens and thickens into a filling that imitates the texture of apples.
- Fine white sugar
- Provides sweetness and balances the sharpness of the lemon.
- Lemon
- Adds acidity and bright flavour, and the rind adds aromatic oils.
- Puff paste
- Forms a flaky, rich crust that holds the filling and browns in the oven.
- Nutmeg
- Adds a warm, aromatic spice note to the filling.
The step that matters
Soaking the crushed cracker. The cracker must soak long enough in the cold water to soften fully, since its starch absorbs liquid and swells into the filling's body. Undersoaked pieces stay hard and gritty in the baked pie.
Swap the nutmeg
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, lemon):
- Cinnamonfits better
- Gingerfits better
- Marjoramfits about as well
- Nutmegthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, lemon. 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.
You might also like
Lemon Cake228 recipes
Lemon Ice147 recipes
Lemon Sherbet103 recipes
Lemon Custard64 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.