W&W "Olive Tapenade"

My friend Katrin made an amazing olive spread at one of her parties last year. I've been wanting to make it ever since. I can’t believe I waited so long. I asked her about the ingredients months ago. I could have been enjoying it all this time. I love olives, but I kept them waiting for months to puff up my face and dry up my blood with their salty tang.

I started with nearly one cup each of pitted Kalamata, green and black olives. To the olives I added a tablespoon of fresh capers, 3 teaspoons of lime juice and 1/4 cup of feta cheese. Not owning a food processor, I threw these ingredients into my blender and pressed chop. Once fully chopped, I added Extra Virgin Olive Oil. I didn't measure it; I added it visually. It's all about consistency. I pulsed the blender so that the chopped ingredients mixed completely with the olive oil.

It wasn't until I had emptied the tapenade into a container that I realized I had omitted the fresh garlic clove. I had looked right at it on my recipe and still left it out. Fortunately, I had some minced garlic in the refrigerator. I added a heaping 1/2-teaspoon to cover my blunder.

I served sliced beets, fresh mango and Gouda goat cheese as toppings to help cut the saltiness of the tapenade. I also served sun dried tomato hummus - store bought not homemade. The bread was a very crusty organic French baguette. It made the perfect base for all of the above. The dry Sauvignon Blanc had just the right bite to counter the salt.

Alas, the stirred in minced garlic had no flavor whatsoever. I will add that fresh clove next time and report the difference.

Cheers!