Why it works: Lemon and almond match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 10% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,655 recipes. Both carry eucalyptol, which smells eucalyptus, herbal. The science ↓
Grated Apple Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point.
Prepare
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Grate the apples and set aside.
Make the batter
In a bowl, beat the egg yolks with the powdered sugar until thick like batter.
Add the grated apples, grated lady fingers, lemon peel, and beaten egg whites to the mixture, then mix until well combined.
Bake and serve
Pour the mixture into a well-greased springform pan.
Strew blanched almonds on top.
Bake for 30-40 minutes or until set.
Serve with cream.
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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Lemon + almondtop 10% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together5,655 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
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Apple + lemontop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,551 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Apple + almondtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,025 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
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Sugar + almondtop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together15,679 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-penten-3-one (fish, pungent).
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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
- Tart apples
- Provide moisture and bulk, giving the pudding its soft, fruity body.
- Egg yolks
- Add richness and, as they cook, help the pudding set firm.
- Egg whites
- Trap air when beaten, giving the pudding a light, airy texture.
- Lady fingers
- Absorb moisture from the apples and eggs, adding structure and softness.
- Powdered sugar
- Sweetens the pudding and helps the yolks thicken into a smooth batter.
- Lemon peel
- Adds bright aroma that balances the sweetness of the sugar and apples.
The step that matters
Fold in the beaten egg whites gently. Beaten egg whites hold air bubbles that make the pudding light. Vigorous or prolonged mixing deflates them, leaving a denser, heavier pudding after baking.
Swap the apple
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (egg, sugar, lemon, almond):
- Vanillafits better
- Orangefits better
- Raisinfits better
- Applethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against egg, sugar, lemon, almond. 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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