Why it works: Cinnamon and clove match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 14,189 recipes. Both carry ethyl cinnamate, which smells sweet, balsamic. The science ↓
Grated Apple Pie
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°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 350°F (175°C).
Peel and grate the apples if using whole apples.
Make the filling
In a large bowl, beat 2 of the eggs and mix in the grated apples, sugar, raisins, butter, cinnamon, and cloves.
Pour the mixture into a pie crust.
Top and bake
Beat the remaining 2 egg whites until stiff peaks form and spread over the top of the pie.
Bake for 30-40 minutes or until the meringue is golden.
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 + clovetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together14,189 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
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Raisin + cinnamontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,390 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).
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Apple + cinnamontop 4% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,598 recipes
Shared aroma: methyl cinnamate (strawberry).
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Apple + clovetop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,774 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
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Raisin + clovetop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,070 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Eggs
- Bind the filling and, as whipped whites, form the golden meringue topping.
- Apples
- Provide the main body and moisture of the filling.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps the meringue brown.
- Butter
- Adds fat and richness to the filling.
- Raisins
- Add chewy texture and concentrated sweetness.
The step that matters
Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Egg whites trap air when beaten, and stiff peaks give the meringue structure so it holds its shape and bakes to a light, golden top. Underbeaten whites will weep or slump on the pie.
Swap the apple
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, raisin, egg, butter, cinnamon, clove):
- Vanillafits better
- Figfits better
- Applethe original
- Quincefits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, raisin, egg, butter, cinnamon, clove. 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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