Black Olives Recipes

MARINATED OLIVES

Steps:

• Place olives in a bowl. Combine the remaining ingredients; pour over olives and stir. Cover and refrigerate for 1-2 days before serving, stirring several times each day. , Olives may be refrigerated for 2 weeks. Serve with a slotted spoon.

HOW TO USE UP OLIVES

Steps:

• Spicy tomato pasta Jazz up a ready-made tomato and chilli pasta sauce by throwing in black olives, capers and chopped anchovy fillets. Stir through long, thin pasta and sprinkle with chopped basil.
• Quick savoury dip Create a quick tapenade by finely chopping pitted olives and a little garlic. Process until smooth, season, then add olive oil to loosen and lemon juice to taste.
• Crispy bruschetta For a summery bruschetta, crush black olives and cherry tomatoes, and spread onto toasted ciabatta rubbed with garlic. Top with peppery rocket leaves, drizzle with oil and season.
• Simple chicken dish Make a marinade with sliced olives, balsamic vinegar, olive oil and seasoning. Coat chicken thighs and leave for 15 mins. Put in a roasting dish with lemon quarters and rosemary leaves. Roast at 190C/fan 170C/gas 5 for 20 mins. Turn and roast for another 15 mins or until cooked through. Serve with the lemons and juices sprinkled over.
• Mediterranean salad Throw together a quick salad with a bag of baby salad leaves tossed with a light dressing. Add cubes of feta, olives and SunBlush tomatoes. Serve with focaccia or other country bread.
• Easy stuffed tomatoes For an easy, prepare-ahead starter or light lunch, stuff scooped-out tomatoes with cooled, cooked rice flavoured with minced garlic, sliced green olives, chopped tomato, lemon juice, and chopped herbs, such as basil or flat-leaf parsley.
• Mayonnaise with a twist Pit and chop olives, add to ready-made mayonnaise, season and add a splash of lemon juice. Mix well before using as a dip for raw vegetables, or spread in a sandwich with salad leaves and ham or salami.
• Chunky veggie sauce Make a rich and chunky sauce using aubergines, red onion, garlic, courgettes, red pepper and a can of chopped tomatoes. Throw in a handful of olives - great as a side dish or stirred through pasta.
• Quick summer tarts Cut 2 circles from a sheet of puff pastry to make quick pizza bases. Score a border 1cm from the edge, then cover with ready-caramelised onions from a jar or ready-roasted red peppers, and sliced tomatoes. Top with black olives, and anchovy fillets before cooking for 15 mins at 220C/fan 200C/gas 7.
• Main-meal salad Lightly dress salad leaves and arrange on a plate. Top with cooked and cooled French beans and baby new potatoes, black olives, halved cherry tomatoes, hard-boiled eggs cut into quarters and tinned tuna chunks. Season before serving.

BLACK OLIVE TAPENADE

Steps:

• Blitz all the ingredients except the thyme in a small food processor. Season with black pepper then transfer to a jar or serving dish and scatter over the thyme leaves if using. Keeps in the fridge for 3 days.

BLACK OLIVE SPREAD

Steps:

• Place olives, Parmesan cheese, and garlic (if using) in a food processor. Add olive oil slowly while running. Process until smooth.

EASY BLACK OLIVE TAPENADE (WITH A GREEN OLIVE VERSION TOO!)

Steps:

• Combine olives, garlic, anchovies, capers and 1 tablespoon olive oil in the food processor. Do not add any salt!
• Process about 15 seconds, scrape down the edges with a spatula and add the other 1 tablespoon olive oil.
• Process again until almost smooth but still a little bit chunky(about 30 seconds). You should not be able to see any garlic chunks left but it shouldn't be a super smooth paste either
• Serve tapenade immediately on toasted bread or store it in the fridge, in an airtight glass container.

MARINATED BLACK OLIVES

Steps:

• In a resealable container, mix together all ingredients. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator overnight or up to 1 week. Serve at room temperature.