A simple, delicious olive/walnut tapenade!
We had guests for dinner the other night. Cindy was concerned that we didn’t have appetizers and there wasn’t time to go out and get any. I have been buying a lot of variety of nuts, including walnuts, from the bulk store and freezing them while I figure out what to do with them. And there were some jars of Kalamata olives in the cupboard just waiting.
Tapenade to the rescue!
I thought I made too much of it, a double recipe of what is below. But it was almost gone and Cindy and I finished it the next day.
I love olives so much! They are amazing by themselves, or in so many dishes. When I was a kid I really liked those kinda plasticky olives in the can and thought any other kind of olive was disgusting, now things have flipped around. Bring on the kalamatas, the oil-cured olives, big green ones, they are all so good!
The miso gives the dish a really nice umami.
Recipe
Olive/Walnut Tapenade
Ingredients
- 1 cup olives kalamata, or a mix
- ½ cup walnuts
- 2 cloves garlic crushed
- ¼ cup Italian parsley fresh, chopped
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest optional
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon miso red
Instructions
- Pulse in a food processor until crumbly. Mix well to ensure the miso is fully distributed through the tapenade.
- Taste and adjust flavors. More miso will give it more body. More pepper flakes will give it more heat. Try Aleppo Pepper instead of red pepper flakes for an earthier taste.
- Let sit in the refrigerator to allow the flavors to meld and develop. It is even better the next day, so if you can, make it the day before though you may have to make extra so there is some left for dinner.
- Serve with crusty bread or crackers.
GB McClure
Oh wow, this looks delicious, Keith! I can’t wait to make it. I agree that a good olive can’t be beat.