Why it works: Apple and apricot match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 777 recipes. Both carry gamma-undecalactone, which smells peach, sweet. The science ↓
Apple Hedgehog
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 the apples
Pare and core the apples.
Make a syrup with the water and sugar, then simmer the apples until tender.
Drain the apples and fill the core cavity with apricot or strawberry jam.
Build the hedgehog
Arrange the apples on a dish in the shape of a hedgehog.
Stew the boiling apples down to a smooth marmalade and fill the spaces between the apples with it.
Whisk the egg whites and sugar to a solid froth, then spread it evenly over the hedgehog.
Sift sugar over the froth.
Blanch and cut the almonds into long spikes, then stick them thickly over the surface.
Bake and serve
Place the dish in a 350°F (175°C) oven to slightly color the almonds and heat the apples through.
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 + apricottop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together777 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-undecalactone (peach, sweet).
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Apricot + almondtop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together852 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
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Sugar + syruptop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together5,842 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Apple + almondtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,025 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
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Apricot + syruptop 17% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together451 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Apples
- Hold the shape of the hedgehog while cooking, and provide the main fruit body of the dessert.
- Egg whites
- Whisked into a stiff froth that sets lightly in the oven and forms the coating.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the syrup and the froth, and helps the whisked whites hold their structure.
- Sweet almonds
- Form the spikes on the surface and brown lightly in the oven for flavour and colour.
- Boiling apples
- Cook down into a smooth marmalade that fills the gaps and adds thickness and tartness.
- Apricot or strawberry jam
- Fills the core cavities, adding sweetness and fruity flavour inside each apple.
The step that matters
Whisking the egg whites to a solid froth. Egg whites must be whisked until stiff so they trap air and hold their shape. Under-whipped whites will slump and run off the apples in the oven.
Swap the almond
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (apple, sugar, egg, apricot, syrup):
- Chestnutfits about as well
- Almondthe original
- Hazelnutfits about as well
- Pistachiofits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against apple, sugar, egg, apricot, syrup. 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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