Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Bonnie's Super Awesome* Easy Olive Tapenade


*(note from editor: I know it's super awesome because I ate it, and it was yum).

I had some leftover kalamata olives from a picnic and was wondering what to do with them, and a google search led me to a recipe for olive tapenade that inspired this little number. My end result was nothing like the original recipe, so I'll just credit it for inspiration. This recipe results in a rich and creamy olive spread that can be used as a yummy snack on breads and crackers. I can even envision something fancy like little toasts with the spread on top and a cut kalamata or two arranged just so...

A few notes: You'll need a blender or a food processor that is able to grind nuts. Otherwise the creamy texture isn't going to be possible. Also, the end result is super potent, so you won't need much on your bread/cracker/whatever you choose to eat it on. I thought I had gone wrong until I actually put it on a piece of bread. Finally, I didn't measure anything, so feel free to be flexible with these directions.

Ingredients:
1 tub of kalamata olives, drained. (If you want to make this lower in fat, set the olive juice aside and sub it for some of the oil)
1/2 cup chopped nuts (I used walnuts, but you can use whatever)
1 clove garlic, chopped or garlic-pressed
Olive oil (I didn't measure, I probably used about a tablespoon. whatever you prefer)

That's all! the original recipe had feta cheese, so if you wanted it cheesy you could add some.

Put all of your ingredients into the blender, making sure the nuts are closest to the blade. (This gets kind of thick, so if the olives are first they are just going to keep grinding while the nuts sit on top) Grind the mixture until it reaches a creamy consistency. If it's too thick, add more oil/olive juice and blend some more. This should make about a cup of tapenade. Enjoy!

5 comments:

Laurel said...

yummm, sounds delicious!!

Laurel said...

also, you got your camera working!!!! yay!

Anonymous said...

I'm Bonnie's mom! This recipe looks so good I think I'll try it too!!

Lisa said...

Hi Bonnie's mom! Thanks for your stuffed mushroom recipe - they were delicious!

Bonnie said...

Just made this again, and used yogurt as an experiment! Just a tablespoon or 2 of yogurt takes some of the "edge" off and makes this less potent...