Why it works: Apple and lemon are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 7,551 recipes. Both carry trans-2-nonenal, which smells cardboard, fatty. The science ↓
Murangue Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a cool oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the filling
Stew and mash the apples through a sieve.
In a bowl, cream together the butter and sugar.
Add the mashed apples, beaten eggs, lemon juice, and lemon rind; mix well.
Bake the pudding
Pour the mixture into a baking dish and bake in a moderate oven at 350°F (175°C) until set.
Make and add the meringue
In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites with 3 tablespoons of sifted sugar until stiff peaks form.
Once the pudding is baked and nearly cool, spread the meringue over the top.
Return the pudding to a cool oven for a few minutes until the meringue is crusted but not browned.
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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Apple + lemontop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,551 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Apple + buttertop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,706 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Butter + lemontop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,227 recipes
Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
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Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
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Butter + sugartop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Apples
- Provide the main bulk and moisture, giving the pudding a soft, fruity body.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richness and a tender, smooth texture in the filling.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps soften the filling while creaming with the butter.
- Eggs
- Coagulate on heating, giving the filling its set structure.
- Egg whites
- Whipped into a foam that gives the meringue volume and a light, airy topping.
- Lemon
- Its juice adds acidity and its rind adds bright aroma that balances the sweetness.
The step that matters
Finishing the meringue in a cool oven. Meringue sugar and proteins brown quickly at high heat, so a cool oven lets the top crust set gently without scorching. Spreading it on a nearly cool pudding keeps the meringue from melting or weeping.
Swap the apple
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, sugar, egg, lemon):
- Vanillafits better
- Orangefits better
- Raspberryfits better
- Applethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, sugar, egg, 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.
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