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 ↓
Apple Pie, or Any Other Fruit Pie
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a warm oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare
Quarter, peel, and core the apples.
Envelop the apples with some of paste A and place them in a tin or sheet iron pan.
Bake
Bake in a warm oven at 400°F (200°C) for 20 minutes.
Make a few holes at the top with a fork to let the vapor out.
Return to the oven until done, checking for color and appearance.
Finish and serve
Dust the pie with powdered sugar when taking it from the oven.
Serve warm or cold.
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
- Soften as they bake, releasing moisture and aroma that form the pie's filling.
- Paste a
- Forms the pastry casing that holds the apples and browns in the oven.
The step that matters
Returning to the oven until done. Baking time alone does not show when the pastry is ready. Checking color and appearance tells the cook when the crust has browned and the apples have softened, which a fixed time may miss.
“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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