Why it works: Cinnamon and nutmeg match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 11,917 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓
Apple Pie
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. 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
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
In a large bowl, mix sliced apples, sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and lemon juice.
Pour the apple mixture into the pie crust.
Dot the top with butter.
Bake
Cover with another pie crust or lattice, seal edges, and cut slits for steam.
Bake for 45-50 minutes until apples are tender and crust is golden brown.
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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Cinnamon + nutmegtop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together11,917 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Apple + cinnamontop 4% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,598 recipes
Shared aroma: methyl cinnamate (strawberry).
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Nutmeg + lemontop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together11,318 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
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Cinnamon + lemontop 7% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together7,950 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
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Flour + nutmegtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,623 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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 tender fruit texture that fills the pie.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps draw out juices that form the filling.
- Flour
- Thickens the juices released by the apples so the filling sets rather than runs.
- Butter
- Adds richness and fat that contributes flavour and helps the crust brown.
- Lemon juice
- Adds acidity that brightens the apple flavour and balances the sweetness.
The step that matters
Cutting steam slits in the top crust. Apples release steam and juice as they bake; without vents, pressure can build and split the crust or bubble filling out the sides. Vents let steam escape so the crust stays intact.
Swap the apple
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon, butter):
- Raisinfits better
- Vanillafits better
- Blueberryfits better
- Applethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon, butter. 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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