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Woodcock Toast

A toast topped with liver paste, cream, and whisked egg whites.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 10 ingredients
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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 ↓

Woodcock Toast

Oven, in the book's wordsA moderate oven

Ingredients

Directions

The book says “a moderate oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.

Prepare the liver paste

  1. Pound the livers to a paste and mix with anchovy sauce, sugar, butter, egg yolk, and spiced pepper.

  2. Pass the mixture through a sieve and set aside on a clean plate.

Make the toasts

  1. Fry the bread slices until golden and crisp, then spread the liver paste over them.

  2. Place the toasts in a 350°F (175°C) oven to keep warm.

Finish and serve

  1. Heat the cream over low heat and stir in the strained egg yolks until thickened and hot, but not boiling.

  2. Pour the cream mixture over the toasts and top with whisked egg whites.

  3. Serve immediately.

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.

  1. Anchovy + saucetop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together2,057 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

  2. Butter + breadtop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together27,232 recipes

    Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).

  3. Anchovy + breadtop 10% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,260 recipes

    Shared aroma: hexanol (green, fruity).

  4. Anchovy + eggtop 12% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together2,330 recipes

    Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).

  5. Liver + anchovytop 12% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together199 recipes

    Shared aroma: hexanol (green, fruity).

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

What each ingredient does

Livers
Form the rich, smooth paste that gives the toasts their main flavour and body.
Butter
Adds fat and richness, helping the liver paste spread smoothly and taste rounded.
Egg yolks
Thicken the warm cream as they heat, giving a custard-like, set texture.
Heavy cream
Adds moisture and richness, and forms a silky base when thickened with yolks.
Egg whites
Whisked and spooned on top, they add a light, airy topping.
Bread
Provides a crisp, sturdy base that holds the paste and sauce.

The step that matters

Heating the cream and egg yolks. Egg yolks thicken when gently heated but scramble if they get too hot or boil. Keep the heat low and stir constantly so the mixture becomes smooth and thick rather than grainy.

“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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