Why it works: Sesame and dates work together. They rank in the top 23% of all ingredient pairs, and 9 recipes mention both. Both carry 2-methoxy-4-vinylphenol, which smells clove, smoky. The science ↓
The recipe
14 servingsIngredients
Contains: milk, tree nuts, sesame (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)
Directions
Method written by CompKitchen from the ingredient list. Not the original author's method, not kitchen-tested.
Heat the oven to 325°F (160°C). Lightly oil a large rimmed baking sheet with a little of the vegetable oil.
In a small saucepan over low heat, warm the honey, maple syrup and remaining vegetable oil until runny, about 3 minutes, stirring to combine.
In a large bowl, toss the jumbo rolled oats, flaked almonds, pine nuts and sesame seeds. Pour over the warm honey mixture and stir until every piece is coated.
Spread the mixture evenly on the baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, stirring once halfway through, until golden and fragrant.
Leave the granola on the sheet to cool completely, stirring occasionally so it forms clusters. It crisps as it cools.
Once cool, add the puffed rice, sultanas, raisins, dried cranberries, dried cherries, chopped dates, chopped apricots and dried coconut shavings. Stir to mix evenly.
Store the granola in an airtight container. To serve, spoon portions into bowls, top with Greek yogurt and scatter raspberries over the top.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
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Sesame + datestop 23% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together9 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-methoxy-4-vinylphenol (clove, smoky).
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Rice + sesametop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together643 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-methoxy-4-vinylphenol (clove, smoky).
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Almond + sesametop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together203 recipes
Shared aroma: acetylpyrazine (roast).
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Almond + pinetop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together176 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-pentanedione (butter, sweet).
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Oats + almondtop 4% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together552 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3,5-trimethylpyrazine (cocoa, roasted).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
Flavor stand-ins for the sesame
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (honey, maple syrup, oats, almond, pine, nuts, rice):
- Peanutbetter flavor fit
- Walnutbetter flavor fit
- Pecansbetter flavor fit
- Sesamethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against honey, maple syrup, oats, almond, pine, nuts, rice. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).
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