Midsummer brings outdoor parties, refreshing cocktails with friends and the charcuterie board. One excellent component on a charcuterie board is the olive tapenade. You can of course use store purchased tapenade, but nothing beats fresh-made. Since you are making your own Homemade Wine Crackers, try making this tapenade, too. It is so very easy to make and whips up fast.
What is tapenade?
Tapenade is a classic from Provence in the southeastern region of France that borders the Mediterranean. Etymologically, tapenade has evolved from the French name for caper buds, which is tapeno. Capers are still an important ingredient in modern tapenade. along with the olive.
Traditionally, tapenade is made from black olives, but recipes have evolved over the years to include the flavors of green olives, too. And now we are starting to see tapenades made out of other marinated produce – think sun dried tomato and sweet onion tapenade.
What do I use olive tapenade with?
As mentioned, put tapenade on your charcuterie board along with a soft cheese (like a brie or camembert), a hard cheese (such as a manchego), cured meats like salami and prosciutto, and toasted baguette points.
It is unlikely you will have any left over, but if you do, stir it into pasta with a drizzle of olive oil for a tasty and incredibly fast meal. Or, add it to your red tomato sauce for an amazing puttanesca dish. You can even swirl it into bread dough for an amazing olive bread. It is also wonderful on baked chicken or salmon.
Ingredients for olive tapenade
- 2 Cups pitted olives
- 1 Cup fresh basil leaves
- 2 tablespoons capers, drained
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped; roasted if desired
- 1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 cup extra virgin Olive Oil
- fresh ground pepper, to taste.
Instructions
Place the first 5 ingredients in a food processor and pulse until they are combined. do not over-process; you want the tapenade to be just a little chunky to differentiate it from a paste.
Slowly add the olive oil while the food processor is running.
Season to taste with the pepper, if desired.
