Why it works: Flour and egg are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 106,462 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Sliced Apple Pie
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a moderate oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the pastry
Rub the shortening into the flour with your hands until it resembles meal.
Add just enough cold water to form a pastry that can be rolled out.
Assemble the pie
Roll out the pastry and use it to line the pie plates.
Fill the plates with sliced apples or your choice of filling.
Sprinkle flour over the pastry, roll it out, and line the plates again.
Wet the lower crust to help the upper crust stick.
Cut two or three small slits in the upper crust.
Do not press the outer edges of the crust together.
If desired, brush the upper crust with beaten egg for a glossy finish.
Bake
Bake in a moderate oven at 350°F (175°C) for 45 minutes, or until the apples are tender.
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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Flour + eggtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + appletop 22% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,140 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Apple + eggtop 30% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together7,461 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Flour and egg barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 106,462 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
- Shortening
- Coats flour particles to create a tender, flaky pastry texture.
- All-purpose flour
- Forms the structure of the pastry dough with the water.
- Sliced apples
- Provide the filling, which softens and sweetens as it bakes.
- Egg
- Browns the upper crust and gives it a glossy finish.
The step that matters
Do not press the outer edges of the crust together. Sealing the edges tightly can trap steam and prevent the crust from sealing properly; leaving the edges loose lets steam escape and keeps the pastry from tearing or shrinking into a dense, misshapen rim during baking.
Swap the apple
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (flour, egg):
- Raisinfits better
- Vanillafits better
- Lemonfits better
- Applethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against flour, 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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