Why it works: Apple and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 18% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 16,478 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
Baked Apples
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.
Prepare
Wipe the apples and core them if desired.
Bake
Place the apples in a baking dish and fill the centers with sugar.
If not cored, sprinkle 1 tablespoon of sugar on each apple.
Cover the bottom of the dish with boiling water.
Bake in a 350°F (175°C) oven for 20 to 30 minutes or until soft.
Add a little spice if desired.
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 + sugartop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together16,478 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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
- Form the body of the dish and soften into a tender, spoonable flesh when baked.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps the apple flesh and juices caramelize slightly as they bake.
- Boiling water
- Creates steam in the dish to keep the apples moist while they bake.
The step that matters
Bake until soft. Apples are done when the flesh is tender all the way through. Pulling them too early leaves them firm and starchy, while baking too long can collapse the skins and fill the dish with liquid. Check at the low end of the 20 to 30 minute range.
“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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