from our notebook · Dips & sauces
Black Olive Tapenade
With black olives, capers and nuts, Black Olive Tapanade makes a perfect dip for sharing or even just for when you need a snack on your own.
- Prep
- 15 min
Jump to the methodAdded August 2011
Quite a while ago now I stopped seeing Tapenade as something that needed to be bought from the shop. It is so easy to make and tastes so much better when you use fresh ingredients that it just became a bit of a no brainer for me.
Whether it’s served with toast or as a dip with things like carrot sticks, it really is a perfect dish when you have friends around and need something to nibble on or even just as a snack if you’re on your own.
You'll need
- 250g black olives stoned
- 1 large garlic clove
- 2 large tbsp of slivered almonds
- 1 tsp baby capers
- 4 canned anchovy fillets
- About 100ml of Olive Oil
- Lemon juice to taste
- Pepper
Method
Put the almonds in a warm pan and toast them until their colour is slightly golden.
In a mini food processor, place the toasted almonds, olives, garlic, capers, anchovies and half of the olive oil. Process until a paste starts to form. Then add the remaining olive oil and process again until it is well mixed in. Depending on your processor, a couple of 20 - 30 second bursts should do it.
Start to process the mixture 
Season the Tapanade Next, taste the paste and add the lemon juice and pepper until the flavour balance is right. Add the lemon and pepper in small amounts at a time processing for a short few second burst in between to make sure it is evenly mixed in.
Once the flavour is right, simply turn the mixture out into a ramekin and either serve or cover with cling film and refrigerate.
