Why it works: Apple and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 8,706 recipes. Both carry trans-2-nonenal, which smells cardboard, fatty. The science ↓
Meringue of Apples
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point.
Prepare the apples
Quarter and core the apples, then slice them.
In a saucepan, stir the apples with the butter and ¼ pound of sugar over medium heat for 15 minutes.
Let the mixture cool, then stir in the jam to taste.
Assemble and bake
Form the apple mixture into a pyramid shape on a serving dish.
Whip the egg whites until firm, then gradually add the remaining ¼ pound of sugar.
Spread the meringue over the apples, sprinkle with more sugar, and bake at 400°F (200°C) for about 10 minutes until pale yellow.
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 + buttertop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,706 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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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).
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Apple + sugartop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together16,478 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Apple and sugar barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 16,478 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
- Apples
- Provide the bulk and tart flavor, softening into a soft base under the meringue.
- Butter
- Adds richness and fat, helping the cooked apples turn smooth and glossy.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the apples and, whipped into the egg whites, stabilizes the meringue.
- Egg whites
- Whip into a foam that sets and browns to form the meringue topping.
- Jam
- Adds extra sweetness and fruity flavor to the cooled apple mixture.
The step that matters
Whipping the egg whites with sugar. Egg whites must be whipped until firm before the sugar is gradually added, so the foam holds its shape in the oven. Fat or yolk left in the bowl can stop the whites from whipping well.
Swap the apple
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, sugar, egg):
- Vanillafits better
- Lemonfits better
- Raisinfits better
- Applethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, 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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