Why it works: Apple and cinnamon are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,598 recipes. Both carry methyl cinnamate, which smells strawberry. The science ↓
Apple Pttdding
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
Make the filling
Beat the butter and sugar together until creamy.
Whisk the eggs until thick, then add to the butter and sugar mixture.
Stir in the grated apples, currants, rose-water, brandy, and spices until well combined.
Bake
Line your plates with pastry, fill with the mixture, and bake.
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 + cinnamontop 4% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,598 recipes
Shared aroma: methyl cinnamate (strawberry).
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Currant + brandytop 7% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,057 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
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Sugar + cinnamontop 10% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together30,779 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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Currant + rosetop 11% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together494 recipes
Shared aroma: alpha-pinene (pine, turpentine).
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Apple + brandytop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,291 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Sugar and cinnamon barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 30,779 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
- Butter
- Creams with the sugar to build a light, rich texture in the filling.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the filling and helps create a creamy base when beaten with butter.
- Eggs
- Whisked until thick to add structure and lift, binding the pudding as it bakes.
- Apples
- Provide moisture and bulk, with grated flesh giving the filling its soft body.
- Currants
- Add chewy pockets of sweetness and fruit flavour throughout the filling.
The step that matters
Whisking the eggs until thick. Thick whisked eggs trap air that gives the mixture lift and a light texture once baked. Under-whisking leaves a denser pudding, so beat until the eggs hold their shape.
Swap the currant
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, sugar, egg, apple, rose, brandy, cinnamon):
- Vanillafits better
- Figfits better
- Apricotfits better
- Currantthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, sugar, egg, apple, rose, brandy, cinnamon. 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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