Why it works: Apple and wine are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 10% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,207 recipes. Both carry 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells green bell pepper, earthy. The science ↓
A Very Nice Apple Pie or Tart
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.
Poach the apples
Combine sugar, lemon slices, mace, and water in a saucepan.
Bring the mixture to a boil.
Carefully add the apples.
Simmer until the apples are tender and the liquid is clear.
Remove the apples and set them aside.
Reduce the liquid until only a small amount remains.
Assemble and bake
Line a pie plate with puff pastry.
Arrange the apples inside the pastry.
Add wine to the reduced juice.
Pour the wine mixture over the apples.
Brush the pastry edges and apples with egg white.
Sprinkle fine sugar over the pastry and apples.
Bake at 400°F (200°C) until the crust 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.
-
Apple + winetop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,207 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine (green bell pepper, earthy).
-
Lemon + winetop 13% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together6,157 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
-
Apple + lemontop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,551 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
-
Apple + macetop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together865 recipes
Shared aroma: alpha-pinene (pine, turpentine).
-
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
- Greening apples
- Provide the main filling, softening during poaching while holding their shape in the pie.
- White sugar
- Sweetens the poaching syrup and helps it reduce into a concentrated, flavourful juice.
- Puff pastry
- Forms the layered, crisp, golden crust that encloses the apples.
- Egg white
- Brushed on the pastry to promote browning and a glossy finish.
- Wine
- Adds acidity and aroma to the reduced juice poured over the apples.
The step that matters
Simmer the apples until just tender. Overcooking makes the apples collapse into mush, while undercooking leaves them firm and raw-tasting. Gentle simmering keeps them intact for baking.
Swap the mace
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (apple, sugar, lemon, wine, egg):
- Cinnamonfits better
- Tarragonfits better
- Nutmegfits better
- Macethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against apple, sugar, lemon, wine, 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.
More apple pie recipes
You might also like
Apple Pudding256 recipes
Lemon Cake228 recipes
Lemon Ice147 recipes
Lemon Sherbet103 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.