Why it works: Milk and vanilla are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 19,187 recipes. Both carry ethyl caproate, which smells fruity, apple peel. The science ↓
Dried Apple Short Cake with Pudding Sauce
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point. The book gives no cooking times either; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.
Prepare
Soak the dried apples in water until soft, then drain.
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Make the batter
In a bowl, cream the butter and sugar together.
Add the milk and vanilla, mixing well.
In another bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt.
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture.
Fold in the soaked apples.
Pour the batter into a greased baking dish.
Bake and serve
Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown.
Serve warm with pudding sauce.
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.
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.
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Milk + vanillatop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together19,187 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).
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Butter + milktop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Apple + vanillatop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,501 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together35,032 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
-
Apple + milktop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,104 recipes
Shared aroma: 4-heptenal (creamy, biscuit).
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
- Dried apples
- Provide the fruit and moisture that give the shortcake its tender, juicy pieces.
- Flour
- Forms the structure of the batter as its proteins set during baking.
- Butter
- Adds fat that tenderizes the crumb and carries flavor.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps the crust brown during baking.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas during baking so the shortcake rises and stays light.
- Milk
- Adds moisture that hydrates the flour and gives the batter its softness.
The step that matters
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture. Adding flour in portions and mixing only until combined keeps the batter from becoming overworked. Overmixing develops gluten, which can make the shortcake tough and dense.
Swap the apple
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (flour, sugar, butter, milk, vanilla):
- Figfits better
- Raisinfits better
- Peachfits better
- Applethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against flour, sugar, butter, milk, 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.
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