Why it works: Gelatin and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,778 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Best Cherry Pie
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the pie
Line a pie tin with pie dough.
Fill with washed and seeded cherries to make one-third the thickness of the pie.
Make the gelatin layer
Dissolve gelatin in water and add 2 tablespoons of sugar; mix well.
Pour the mixture over the cherries and bake until done.
Let the pie cool slightly.
Top and brown
Whip the egg whites until stiff, then add 2 tablespoons of sugar and a pinch of salt.
Spread the whipped egg whites over the pie and return to the oven to brown.
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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Gelatin + sugartop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,778 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Gelatin + eggtop 28% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,449 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Cherries
- Provide the fruit filling and its flavour, forming the bulk of the pie.
- Gelatin
- Sets the liquid so the filling holds its shape when the pie is cut.
- Egg whites
- Whipped into a stiff foam that forms a light topping which browns in the oven.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the filling and helps the whipped whites hold their structure.
The step that matters
Whipping the egg whites until stiff. Egg whites must be whipped to stiff peaks before the sugar is added so they trap air and hold their shape on top of the pie. Under-whipped whites will weep or slump when they go back into the oven.
“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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