Olive Tapenade

Photo Courtesy of Dave McCoy Photography

Over the July 4th weekend, I ordered a vegetarian sandwich with olive tapenade that inspired me to prepare this recipe. I usually choose grapeseed oil mayonnaise and avocado to use as spreads on my vegetable sandwiches but now that I have tried tapenade, I will add it to my sandwich making repertoire. I have always appreciated tapenade as a spread for crackers or baguette so finding one more use for this tasty goodness is a bonus.

While reading the introduction to this recipe, I learned that tapenade originated in southern France and was first made for spreading on toast. It has also been used historically as a dip, sandwich spread or if used sparingly and thinned with olive oil or water, a sauce. The introduction recommends oil-cured olives as the best choice for tapenade because they make a dark, rich paste. The recipe is as follows......

Ingredients:

about 1 pound flavorful black and/or green olives

1/4 cup capers, rinsed and drained

2 cloves garlic, peeled and lightly crushed, or more to taste

about 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

freshly ground pepper

chopped parsley leaves for garnish (optional)

Pit olives. If using oil-cured olives, squeeze pit out; with brined olives, flatten olive with side of knife to split and allow pit to be removed. Put olives, capers and garlic in food processor or blender, along with half of olive oil. Pulse machine once or twice, then add remaining oil a bit at a time. Goal is to make a spreadable and pasty consistency so you may not need all of the oil. Pulse between additions of oil. Stir in pepper, add garnish and serve or cover and refrigerate up to one month.

I would give this tapenade a 6 out of 10 based on a comparison with other tapenades I have eaten. I liked the flavor but I think I would prefer to use several different types of olives instead of just green and kalamata. I have never met an olive I didn't like but I do think I went a little bit heavy on the green olives in this dish. This recipe was also on the more simple end of the spectrum as far as ingredients go so I don't think the flavors were as developed as they could have been. I may search for another tapenade recipe that uses more ingredients in order to develop a greater depth of flavor. Other than these few changes, I am happy enough with the final result. This should be delicious on crackers and sandwiches over the next few days.