Why it works: Raisin and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 13% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 12,481 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
Raisin Pie
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a hot oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the filling
Stir the raisins.
In a pot, combine raisins, sugar, and water.
Simmer on low heat until the raisins are plump.
Let the mixture cool.
Assemble and bake
Prepare a pie crust and fill it with the raisin mixture.
Sprinkle a little flour on top and cover with a top crust.
Bake in a hot oven at 400°F (200°C) until 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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Raisin + sugartop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together12,481 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Raisins
- Provide the main filling, sweetness and chewy texture once softened by simmering.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the filling and helps thicken the raisin mixture as it cooks.
- Pie crust
- Encloses the filling and forms the golden, crisp outer structure of the pie.
The step that matters
Simmer on low heat until the raisins are plump. Simmering softens the raisins and lets them absorb liquid. Cooking too hard can break them apart or scorch the sugar, so low heat keeps the filling smooth and evenly sweet.
“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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