Name: Cheese for Canape
Ingredients: 2 ounces Roquefort cheese; 2 ounces Neufchatel cheese; 2 tablespoons butter; ¼ teaspoon coarse sea salt; 1 teaspoon paprika; 1 tablespoon anchovy sauce; 1 tablespoon olive oil; 2 tablespoons finely chopped olives

Why it works: Anchovy and sauce are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,057 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓

Cheese for Canape

Ingredients

Directions

In a bowl, combine Roquefort cheese, Neufchatel cheese, butter, coarse sea salt, and paprika, then mix well until smooth.
Stir in anchovy sauce, olive oil, and chopped olives until fully incorporated.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

Anchovy + saucetop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,057 recipes

Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Roquefort cheese + cheesetop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together21 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl 2-methylbutyrate (fruity, apple).
Cheese + buttertop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together7,962 recipes

Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
Cheese + olivetop 11% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,802 recipes

Shared aroma: methyl 2-methylbutyrate (apple, fatty).
Roquefort cheese + buttertop 12% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together35 recipes

Shared aroma: gamma-decalactone (peach, creamy).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Roquefort cheese: Provides the sharp, tangy flavour that defines the spread.
Neufchatel cheese: Adds creaminess and moisture, softening the blue cheese for a smooth spread.
Butter: Adds fat for a rich mouthfeel and helps the spread hold together smoothly.
Anchovy sauce: Adds savoury, salty depth that boosts the umami character of the cheese.
Olive oil: Adds fat that loosens the mixture and carries flavour.

“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.